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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: rush · file · hand · pound · march · leaves · fine · trunk

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. fine — all right
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. rush — hurry
  9. file — a document
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. hand — help
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. fine — high quality
  16. file — a line of people
  17. march — the month
  18. pound — a weight
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. file — a tool
  22. march — the month
  23. march — music
  24. leaves — lets stay

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