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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: trunk · land · fork · saw · rest · kick · dip · cabinet

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. saw — the tool
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. fork — in a road
  5. saw — the tool
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. land — to come down
  8. rest — what's left
  9. dip — to sink
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. land — ground
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. land — a country
  15. kick — in football
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. rest — what's left
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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