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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: trunk · last · kick · temple · file · season · rest · squash

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. file — a line of people
  3. kick — in football
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. squash — to crush
  8. rest — a break
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. season — in sport
  11. rest — what's left
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. season — of the year
  14. last — to go on
  15. last — final
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. file — a tool
  18. file — a document
  19. squash — the sport
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. last — finally
  24. temple — a place of worship

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