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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. current — of water
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. current — happening now
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. hand — help
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. branch — a division
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. hand — in cards
  14. rule — government
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. current — electric
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. rule — a law
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. dip — to sink
  21. wax — to grow
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. trunk — of a tree

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