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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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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: race · cold · stand · trunk · fork · ruler

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. race — the arms race
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. race — humankind
  9. fork — in a road
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. cold — not warm
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. cold — an illness
  18. stand — to bear

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