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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: land · staff · fall · racket · trunk · bat · wave · tear

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  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. fall — the season
  2. tear — from crying
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. land — a country
  7. land — to come down
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. fall — to drop
  12. land — ground
  13. staff — a stick
  14. tear — to rip
  15. fall — to drop
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. tear — from crying
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. staff — employees
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. staff — employees
  23. bat — the animal
  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