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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: hand · file · spring · fork · wind · calf · trunk · pit

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. hand — in cards
  3. pit — a hole
  4. hand — help
  5. spring — the season
  6. pit — in a race
  7. file — a line of people
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. spring — a coil
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. file — a document
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. file — a tool
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — moving air
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. fork — in a road
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. trunk — of a tree

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