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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. rule — government
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. cell — in biology
  7. mate — a friend
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. firm — a company
  10. rule — a law
  11. mate — a partner
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. firm — decided
  14. cell — a phone
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. land — to come down
  17. kid — child
  18. firm — steady
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. kid — to tease
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. land — a country
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. land — ground

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