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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: trunk · squash · cell · wind · lie · perch · kick · fan

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. squash — the sport
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. kick — in football
  5. cell — a phone
  6. wind — moving air
  7. lie — to recline
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. wind — moving air
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — the fish
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. cell — in biology
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. squash — to crush
  24. fan — a supporter

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