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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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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: mate · wound · object · cabinet · trunk · cap · tear · cold

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. cap — a lid
  3. mate — to breed
  4. tear — to rip
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. mate — a partner
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. tear — from crying
  10. object — a thing
  11. mate — a friend
  12. object — to protest
  13. wound — an injury
  14. tear — from crying
  15. cold — not warm
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. cap — of ice
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. wound — an injury
  21. cap — a hat
  22. cold — an illness
  23. object — an aim
  24. cabinet — ministers

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