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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: face · hand · wake · trunk · band · chair · deal · calf

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. face — to confront
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. hand — in cards
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. band — a music group
  16. wake — a trail
  17. band — a ring
  18. deal — to handle
  19. chair — a leader
  20. face — part of the head
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. hand — help
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. face — to point toward

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