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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 120 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: nail · trunk · shower · club · lash · wound · suit · net

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. club — for dancing
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. net — after costs
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. club — for golf
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. net — in sport
  13. shower — to wash
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. club — a group
  16. suit — in cards
  17. wound — an injury
  18. suit — clothes
  19. shower — rain
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. suit — to fit
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. net — for catching

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