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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: content · march · craft · trunk · lean · rule · dip · chest

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. march — music
  4. dip — to sink
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. march — the month
  7. chest — of your body
  8. content — happy
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. rule — a law
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. march — the month
  13. chest — a box
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. chest — of your body
  16. lean — to bend
  17. craft — a skill
  18. content — the amount
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. craft — boats
  21. lean — thin
  22. rule — government
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. content — videos and posts

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