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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. land — ground
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cell — in biology
  7. race — humankind
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. race — the arms race
  10. press — newspapers
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. chip — to eat
  13. press — to push
  14. chip — for betting
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. land — a country
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. land — to come down
  20. race — a contest
  21. game — wild animals
  22. press — a publisher
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. game — a match

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