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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 · roll · current · ground · arm · cold · toast · stick

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. ground — the earth
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. cold — not warm
  5. cold — an illness
  6. ground — crushed
  7. toast — bread
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. ground — a position
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. roll — a list
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. current — of water
  18. current — happening now
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. roll — a cake
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. current — electric
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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