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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. swing — to play on
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. sharp — clever
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. swing — music
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. rule — a law
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. swing — in golf
  23. bat — the animal
  24. trunk — of a tree

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