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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: stick · fan · roll · trunk · cold · net · last · root

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. net — for catching
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. cold — an illness
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. root — of a plant
  8. last — final
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. cold — not warm
  11. root — of a word
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. net — in sport
  14. last — finally
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. root — the cause
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. net — after costs
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. roll — a cake
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. roll — a list
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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