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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 chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. wound — an injury
  4. dip — to sink
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. date — the fruit
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. file — a line of people
  14. wound — an injury
  15. file — a tool
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. file — a document
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. rule — government
  20. rule — a law
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. kick — in football

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