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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 · wind · lean · land · ground · roll · charge · pit

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. lean — to bend
  5. pit — in a race
  6. wind — moving air
  7. ground — a position
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. roll — a list
  10. charge — in control
  11. lean — thin
  12. charge — electricity
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. roll — a cake
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. land — ground
  19. land — to come down
  20. wind — moving air
  21. ground — crushed
  22. land — a country
  23. pit — a hole
  24. ground — the earth

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