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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: plane · court · land · foot · calf · hand · tube · coach

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. hand — in cards
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. plane — a tool
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. court — of a king
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. hand — help
  16. foot — a measure
  17. land — ground
  18. land — to come down
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. court — for sport
  21. tube — a container
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. land — a country
  24. court — of law

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com