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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: trunk · net · craft · rush · ground · face · rule · chest

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. rule — government
  3. net — after costs
  4. chest — a box
  5. rush — hurry
  6. ground — a position
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. face — to confront
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. craft — boats
  11. craft — a skill
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — of your body
  15. rule — a law
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. net — for catching
  18. ground — the earth
  19. face — to point toward
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. ground — crushed
  22. net — in sport
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. face — part of the head

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