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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've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. band — a ring
  3. present — there
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. race — humankind
  8. race — the arms race
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. race — a contest
  11. stock — goods
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. present — the time now
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. stock — shares
  17. game — a match
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. dip — to sink
  21. present — a gift
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. band — a music group
  24. game — wild animals

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