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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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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: rule · content · safe · trunk · bat · spring · band · ball

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. band — a music group
  7. rule — government
  8. band — a ring
  9. spring — the season
  10. ball — a great time
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. spring — of water
  16. rule — a law
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. ball — a dance
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. content — happy
  22. spring — a coil
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. content — the amount

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