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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: rest · mine · trunk · cabinet · last · fan · drill · stand

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. last — final
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. last — to go on
  10. rest — a break
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. last — finally
  14. rest — what's left
  15. stand — to bear
  16. rest — what's left
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. drill — the tool
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. mine — for digging
  22. drill — a practice
  23. cabinet — ministers
  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