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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. content — the amount
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. chest — of your body
  5. rule — government
  6. press — a publisher
  7. chest — of your body
  8. content — happy
  9. rule — a law
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. can — to be able to
  14. can — a tin
  15. race — the arms race
  16. chest — a box
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. can — a tin
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. press — newspapers
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. race — a contest
  24. press — to push

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