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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 116 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: press · ground · wind · trunk · rest · leaves · file · lash

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. press — to push
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. rest — a break
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. ground — a position
  7. rest — what's left
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — moving air
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. file — a line of people
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. ground — the earth
  17. file — a document
  18. ground — crushed
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. press — a publisher
  21. file — a tool
  22. press — newspapers
  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