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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: wake · trunk · mine · tear · mate · fan · racket · game

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. tear — to rip
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. tear — from crying
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. mate — a partner
  10. mine — for digging
  11. game — a match
  12. mate — a friend
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. mate — to breed
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. wake — a trail
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. game — wild animals
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. mine — an explosive

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