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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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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: bat · tear · fan · rule · cap · current · trunk · pound

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. tear — to rip
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. cap — of ice
  5. pound — a weight
  6. rule — a law
  7. tear — from crying
  8. bat — the animal
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. cap — a hat
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. rule — government
  17. current — electric
  18. current — happening now
  19. current — of water
  20. cap — a lid
  21. tear — from crying
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. trunk — of a car

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