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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. rule — a law
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. cell — a phone
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. capital — a city
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. pit — a hole
  15. present — the time now
  16. scale — size or range
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. present — there
  19. rule — government
  20. present — a gift
  21. capital — money
  22. scale — in music
  23. pit — in a race
  24. racket — a loud noise

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