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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 116 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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. spell — magic
  3. craft — a skill
  4. march — the month
  5. march — the month
  6. bat — the animal
  7. press — a publisher
  8. march — music
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. rule — government
  11. craft — boats
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. spell — letters
  14. swing — in golf
  15. rule — a law
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. spell — a short time
  18. press — to push
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. swing — music
  21. press — newspapers
  22. swing — to play on
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. bat — in an idiom

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