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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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. cap — a hat
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. rule — government
  6. land — to come down
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. shower — to wash
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. mine — for digging
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. cap — of ice
  16. shower — rain
  17. cap — a lid
  18. rule — a law
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. land — ground
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. land — a country

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