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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. sharp — clever
  3. fall — to drop
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. mine — for digging
  6. wake — a trail
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — the season
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. rule — a law
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. kick — in football
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. band — a ring
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. rule — government

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