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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. field — for sport
  3. field — farmland
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. spring — of water
  6. net — for catching
  7. field — a subject
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. capital — money
  10. fall — to drop
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. capital — a city
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. spring — a coil
  15. net — in sport
  16. fall — to drop
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. fall — the season
  19. net — after costs
  20. rule — government
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. deal — to handle
  23. rule — a law
  24. spring — the season

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