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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. charge — a price
  4. charge — electricity
  5. last — to go on
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. last — final
  8. net — after costs
  9. last — finally
  10. scale — size or range
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. wound — an injury
  13. scale — in music
  14. rule — a law
  15. wax — to grow
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. net — in sport
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. rule — government
  20. wound — an injury
  21. net — for catching
  22. charge — in control
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. rule — to rule out

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