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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 120 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

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

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. chest — of your body
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. chest — of your body
  7. rule — a law
  8. snap — to click
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. race — a contest
  12. race — the arms race
  13. chest — a box
  14. board — to get on
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. board — a committee
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. race — humankind

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