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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: lash · cap · band · stick · fall · shower · trunk · wake

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. band — a ring
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. fall — to drop
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. shower — to wash
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. shower — rain
  12. cap — of ice
  13. wake — a trail
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. fall — to drop
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. band — a music group
  21. cap — a lid
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. fall — the season

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