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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. rule — government
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wind — moving air
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. firm — decided
  14. season — in sport
  15. rule — a law
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. pound — a weight
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. firm — a company
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. firm — steady
  23. season — of the year
  24. coach — a trainer

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