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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 120 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: face · trunk · hand · prune · kid · bay · fall · bore

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. bore — to tire
  5. kid — to tease
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. hand — help
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. face — to point toward
  12. kid — child
  13. face — to confront
  14. bore — to drill
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. face — part of the head
  17. fall — the season
  18. fall — to drop
  19. fall — to drop
  20. prune — to trim
  21. hand — in cards
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. prune — to trim

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