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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: band · ground · trunk · capital · nail · tear · coach · saw

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. ground — the earth
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. tear — from crying
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. band — a music group
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. capital — a city
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. ground — crushed
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. band — a ring
  16. tear — from crying
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. capital — money
  19. saw — the tool
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. tear — to rip
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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