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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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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: wound · ruler · file · wind · trunk · chair

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. wound — an injury
  4. file — a document
  5. wound — an injury
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. wind — moving air
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. file — a tool
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. file — a line of people
  16. wind — moving air
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. chair — a leader

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