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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 · bat · file · patient · land · plane · pop · wake

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. wake — a trail
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. land — a country
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. land — to come down
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. file — a line of people
  13. bat — the animal
  14. pop — music
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. land — ground
  17. file — a tool
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. plane — a tool
  20. pop — to visit
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. pop — soda
  24. file — a document

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