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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: trunk · hide · squash · mine · press · last · hand · dip

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. press — a publisher
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. press — to push
  5. mine — for digging
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. press — newspapers
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. hand — help
  10. last — final
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. hand — in cards
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. squash — to crush
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. dip — to sink
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. last — to go on
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. squash — the sport
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. dip — a sauce

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