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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: ground · lean · saw · trunk · fan · band · game · wake

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. ground — the earth
  4. saw — the tool
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. lean — to bend
  8. game — a match
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. saw — the tool
  15. lean — thin
  16. wake — a trail
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. ground — a position
  20. band — a music group
  21. band — a ring
  22. ground — crushed
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. game — wild animals

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