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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: tear · trunk · hide · cap · fork · mug · chest · rash

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. tear — to rip
  3. mug — a face
  4. rash — a series
  5. cap — of ice
  6. fork — in a road
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. mug — a cup
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. tear — from crying
  11. mug — to rob
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. rash — hasty
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. tear — from crying
  17. cap — a lid
  18. chest — of your body
  19. chest — a box
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. cap — a hat
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. chest — of your body
  24. trunk — of a tree

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