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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.

Make a worksheet

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: trunk · cold · rest · temple · lean · season

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. rest — what's left
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. cold — an illness
  11. rest — what's left
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. season — in sport
  14. lean — thin
  15. season — of the year
  16. lean — to bend
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. rest — a break

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