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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: trunk · toast · cap · tube · wind · bay · file · tear

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. file — a document
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. tear — to rip
  6. cap — a hat
  7. tear — from crying
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. wind — moving air
  12. file — a tool
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. tube — the underground
  18. cap — a lid
  19. wind — moving air
  20. cap — of ice
  21. tube — a container
  22. tear — from crying
  23. toast — bread
  24. trunk — of a car

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