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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: trunk · rest · mine · mark · land · ball · branch · fine

  1. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. ball — a dance
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. mine — for digging
  5. branch — a division
  6. rest — what's left
  7. land — ground
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. land — a country
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. mark — a grade
  13. land — to come down
  14. fine — all right
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rest — a break
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. fine — high quality
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. ball — a great time
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. mark — a trace

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