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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. spring — of water
  6. spring — the season
  7. tube — the underground
  8. swing — music
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. swing — in golf
  12. rule — a law
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. rest — what's left
  17. swing — to play on
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. spring — a coil
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. bat — the animal
  22. rest — a break
  23. tube — a container
  24. trunk — of a car

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