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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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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: pit · wind · leaves · field · shower · stick · ruler · trunk

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. field — farmland
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. field — a subject
  8. shower — rain
  9. wind — moving air
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. pit — a hole
  19. pit — in a race
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. field — for sport
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. wind — moving air

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