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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. rule — government
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. rush — hurry
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. charge — a price
  9. charge — in control
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. field — farmland
  13. net — for catching
  14. snap — to click
  15. field — for sport
  16. charge — electricity
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. net — after costs
  19. net — in sport
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. field — a subject

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