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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: land · cabinet · rush · cold · lean · trunk · court · foot

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. court — of law
  3. land — a country
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. court — for sport
  11. land — to come down
  12. lean — thin
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. lean — to bend
  16. cold — not warm
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. court — of a king
  19. foot — a measure
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. land — ground
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. rush — hurry
  24. cold — an illness

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