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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: squash · capital · fan · leaves · foot · trunk

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. capital — money
  6. squash — the sport
  7. capital — a city
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. foot — a measure
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. squash — to crush
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. foot — the bottom

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