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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. last — to go on
  3. vault — a safe
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. clip — for paper
  7. last — finally
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. clip — a video
  10. clip — to cut
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. mug — a face
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. mug — to rob
  15. mug — a cup
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. chip — for betting
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. chip — to eat
  21. rule — government
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. last — final
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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