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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: spring · hand · land · rule · foot · trunk · mug · fan

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. rule — government
  3. land — to come down
  4. spring — of water
  5. hand — in cards
  6. spring — a coil
  7. land — a country
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. hand — help
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. rule — a law
  16. mug — a cup
  17. mug — to rob
  18. foot — a measure
  19. land — ground
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. mug — a face
  24. rule — to rule out

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