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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. spell — a short time
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. spell — letters
  5. rule — a law
  6. staff — employees
  7. land — a country
  8. bound — certain
  9. race — humankind
  10. rule — government
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. spell — magic
  13. bound — obliged
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. rush — hurry
  17. land — to come down
  18. race — a contest
  19. staff — employees
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. land — ground
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. race — the arms race
  24. bound — tied together

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