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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 120 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: chair · trunk · bear · leaves · hand · rule · land · season

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bear — the animal
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. season — in sport
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. land — to come down
  11. hand — help
  12. chair — a leader
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. rule — government
  16. land — ground
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. hand — in cards
  20. season — of the year
  21. rule — a law
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. land — a country
  24. season — to add flavour

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