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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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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: pound · mine · file · face · bass · saw · cap · trunk

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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. cap — of ice
  4. cap — a hat
  5. file — a line of people
  6. face — to confront
  7. file — a tool
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. face — part of the head
  12. bass — low music
  13. saw — the tool
  14. face — to point toward
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. pound — a weight
  17. bass — the fish
  18. saw — the tool
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. file — a document
  21. mine — for digging
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. pound — to hit hard

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