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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: mate · fork · sharp · content · spring · trunk · last · roll

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. spring — the season
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. mate — a friend
  6. content — the amount
  7. spring — a coil
  8. content — happy
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. fork — in a road
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. sharp — clever
  15. last — final
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. spring — of water
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. roll — a list
  20. last — to go on
  21. last — finally
  22. roll — a cake
  23. mate — to breed
  24. mate — a partner

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