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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: band · game · wave · kid · tube · lean · trunk · racket

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. game — a match
  4. lean — to bend
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. band — a ring
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. tube — the underground
  12. tube — a container
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. kid — to tease
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. lean — thin
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. game — wild animals
  21. kid — child
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. wave — of the sea

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