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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: last · drill · rest · bat · trunk · wave · bound · mark

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. rest — what's left
  4. bound — obliged
  5. last — to go on
  6. bat — the animal
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. drill — the tool
  13. drill — a practice
  14. rest — what's left
  15. last — finally
  16. rest — a break
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. last — final
  19. mark — a trace
  20. bound — certain
  21. drill — army training
  22. mark — a grade
  23. bound — tied together
  24. bat — in an idiom

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