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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: content · tube · stock · land · sharp · trunk · mine · cell

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. tube — a container
  7. cell — in biology
  8. sharp — clever
  9. content — the amount
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. cell — a phone
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. tube — the underground
  14. land — a country
  15. land — ground
  16. content — happy
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. mine — for digging
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. stock — shares
  22. stock — goods
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. land — to come down

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