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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: bear · band · fan · cold · face · trunk · bore · stand

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. face — to point toward
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bore — to drill
  5. face — part of the head
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. cold — an illness
  8. band — a music group
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. stand — to bear
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bore — to tire
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. face — to confront
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. cold — not warm
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. band — a ring
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. trunk — of a tree

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