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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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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: root · hand · trunk · straw · race · court · nail · pass

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. court — for sport
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. court — of law
  7. race — the arms race
  8. pass — a permit
  9. race — a contest
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. hand — help
  12. hand — in cards
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. root — the cause
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. race — humankind
  20. root — of a plant
  21. root — of a word
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. court — of a king

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