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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: rule · lash · game · trunk · roll · prune · tube · pound

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. tube — the underground
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. roll — a cake
  11. prune — to trim
  12. tube — a container
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. roll — a list
  16. game — a match
  17. prune — to trim
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. rule — a law
  20. rule — government
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. game — wild animals
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. pound — a weight

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