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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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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 · fork · content · mine · row · leaves · stand · wind

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. wind — moving air
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. stand — to bear
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. row — a line
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. content — the amount
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. mine — for digging
  20. wind — moving air
  21. content — happy
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. fork — in a road
  24. content — videos and posts

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