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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: safe · bulb · band · lie · cold · pop · trunk · rule

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. pop — to visit
  5. cold — an illness
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. rule — a law
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. rule — government
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. band — a ring
  16. cold — not warm
  17. pop — music
  18. band — a music group
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. pop — soda
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. lie — to recline
  23. bulb — for light
  24. bulb — for light

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