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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: trunk · fork · ground · chest · temple · staff

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. ground — crushed
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. ground — a position
  5. fork — in a road
  6. staff — employees
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. staff — a stick
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. chest — of your body
  12. staff — employees
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. chest — of your body
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. ground — the earth
  17. chest — a box
  18. trunk — of an elephant

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