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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 116 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: trunk · saw · wind · hand · tube · bass · wake · plane

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. wake — a trail
  4. bass — the fish
  5. saw — the tool
  6. hand — help
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. saw — the tool
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. hand — in cards
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. tube — a container
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. tube — the underground
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. wind — moving air
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. plane — a tool
  24. bass — low music

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