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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: wind · rash · fan · fork · trunk · capital · tube · fall

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  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. capital — money
  2. fork — in a road
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. tube — a container
  6. wind — moving air
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. capital — a city
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. wind — moving air
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. rash — hasty
  21. fall — to drop
  22. rash — a series
  23. tube — the underground
  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