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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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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. face — to point toward
  3. track — a path
  4. row — a line
  5. track — to keep track
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. charge — electricity
  8. rule — government
  9. face — part of the head
  10. degree — from a university
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. face — to confront
  17. row — to paddle
  18. degree — temperature
  19. track — a song
  20. degree — an amount
  21. dip — to sink
  22. charge — in control
  23. charge — a price
  24. trunk — of a car

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