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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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. clip — to cut
  3. clip — for paper
  4. rule — a law
  5. spring — of water
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. deal — to handle
  9. can — to be able to
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. stem — to come from
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. race — a contest
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. spring — the season
  17. spring — a coil
  18. rule — government
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. clip — a video
  21. race — humankind
  22. can — a tin
  23. race — the arms race
  24. can — a tin

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