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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: bear · stem · pitcher · trunk · land · board · file · foot

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. bear — the animal
  3. file — a tool
  4. board — to get on
  5. stem — to come from
  6. file — a document
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. land — ground
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. foot — a measure
  20. bear — the animal
  21. land — to come down
  22. board — a committee
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. file — a line of people

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