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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: wind · ground · season · bat · rule · trunk · racket · nail

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. rule — government
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. rule — a law
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. wind — moving air
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. ground — a position
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. ground — crushed
  14. ground — the earth
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. season — of the year
  17. wind — moving air
  18. season — in sport
  19. bat — the animal
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. racket — a loud noise

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