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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: bore · game · net · toast · cold · staff · rush · trunk

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. staff — employees
  6. net — in sport
  7. game — wild animals
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. rush — hurry
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. net — after costs
  16. bore — to tire
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. bore — to drill
  19. net — for catching
  20. staff — employees
  21. toast — bread
  22. game — a match
  23. cold — an illness
  24. staff — a stick

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