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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 120 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: rush · rest · last · lash · trunk · track · pound · mate

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. rest — what's left
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. pound — a weight
  6. mate — to breed
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. track — a song
  9. track — to keep track
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. last — to go on
  13. rest — a break
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. mate — a partner
  16. rest — what's left
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. last — final
  19. mate — a friend
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. track — a path
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. last — finally
  24. pound — to hit hard

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