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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. rule — government
  3. mug — to rob
  4. swing — to play on
  5. swing — in golf
  6. land — to come down
  7. chip — for betting
  8. clip — for paper
  9. chip — to eat
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. mug — a cup
  13. land — a country
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. clip — a video
  16. mug — a face
  17. rash — hasty
  18. clip — to cut
  19. swing — music
  20. rash — a series
  21. rule — a law
  22. land — ground
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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