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

Word bank: band · cold · ruler · dip · charge · race · wake · trunk

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. dip — to sink
  3. race — the arms race
  4. cold — an illness
  5. wake — a trail
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. race — a contest
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. charge — electricity
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. charge — a price
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. charge — in control
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. band — a music group
  20. band — a ring
  21. race — humankind
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. cold — not warm
  24. band — a rubber band

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