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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 116 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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. cell — a phone
  3. rule — a law
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. rule — government
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. pop — to visit
  10. cell — in biology
  11. pop — music
  12. fall — to drop
  13. plane — a tool
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. fall — to drop
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. fall — the season
  20. land — ground
  21. pop — soda
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. branch — a division
  24. land — a country

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