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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. cell — in biology
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. mate — a partner
  6. rash — a series
  7. cold — an illness
  8. chest — a box
  9. cell — a phone
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fall — to drop
  12. chest — of your body
  13. mate — to breed
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. rash — hasty
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. chest — of your body
  22. fall — the season
  23. mate — a friend
  24. cold — not warm

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