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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. kid — to tease
  10. rule — a law
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. race — the arms race
  13. court — of a king
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. stem — to come from
  17. kid — child
  18. court — of law
  19. court — for sport
  20. race — humankind
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. rule — government
  24. race — a contest

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