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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: mine · plane · ground · leaves · foot · trunk · press · file

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. press — a publisher
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. file — a line of people
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. foot — a measure
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. plane — a tool
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. press — to push
  15. press — newspapers
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. file — a document
  18. file — a tool
  19. mine — for digging
  20. ground — a position
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. ground — the earth
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. ground — crushed

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