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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 ________________ went through the wall.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. rule — government
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. content — the amount
  5. land — a country
  6. kick — in football
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. rule — a law
  9. track — a song
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. content — happy
  12. track — a path
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. track — to keep track
  16. land — ground
  17. land — to come down
  18. rest — what's left
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. rest — what's left
  22. rest — a break
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. nail — for a hammer

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