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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: tear · tube · bat · bass · trunk · wind · land · suit

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. tear — from crying
  3. land — to come down
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. land — a country
  7. wind — moving air
  8. suit — to fit
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. bat — the animal
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. tube — a container
  14. tear — from crying
  15. suit — in cards
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. tube — the underground
  19. land — ground
  20. bass — low music
  21. suit — clothes
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. wind — moving air
  24. bass — the fish

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