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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: trunk · arm · hide · current · wave · toast · cold · spell

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. current — of water
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. toast — bread
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. cold — an illness
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. current — happening now
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. spell — letters
  14. cold — not warm
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. spell — a short time
  17. current — electric
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. spell — magic
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. wave — of the sea

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