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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: pound · fan · rule · trunk · face · fine · wave · kid

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. face — to point toward
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. rule — a law
  8. pound — a weight
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. kid — to tease
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. fine — all right
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. fine — high quality
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. face — to confront
  19. kid — child
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. face — part of the head
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. rule — government
  24. fine — a penalty

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