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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. wind — moving air
  3. shower — rain
  4. file — a tool
  5. wind — moving air
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. fall — to drop
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. fall — the season
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. fall — to drop
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. shower — to wash
  16. file — a line of people
  17. file — a document
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. wind — to turn a key

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