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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: row · content · last · ground · lean · mine · fan · trunk

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. content — the amount
  3. last — final
  4. ground — the earth
  5. lean — thin
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. last — finally
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. lean — to bend
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. content — happy
  14. ground — a position
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. row — a line
  19. last — to go on
  20. ground — crushed
  21. row — to paddle
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. mine — for digging
  24. mine — an explosive

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