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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bowl · present · trunk · saw · wave · hand · rash · cold

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. present — there
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. hand — help
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. present — a gift
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. saw — the tool
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. cold — an illness
  14. rash — a series
  15. saw — the tool
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. present — the time now
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. cold — not warm
  23. rash — hasty
  24. cold — the Cold War

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