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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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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: date · wave · band · nail · trunk · straw · fine · wind

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  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. wave — of the sea
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. wind — moving air
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. fine — all right
  9. date — the fruit
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. fine — high quality
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. band — a ring
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. band — a music group
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  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