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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. wound — an injury
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. rule — government
  5. court — of law
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. rule — a law
  8. wound — an injury
  9. row — to paddle
  10. rest — what's left
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. cue — a signal
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. rest — a break
  15. court — of a king
  16. rest — what's left
  17. prune — to trim
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. prune — to trim
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. cue — for pool
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. row — a line
  24. court — for sport

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