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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: cap · cell · scale · fan · trunk · lash · mate · rest

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. mate — a friend
  3. cap — of ice
  4. cap — a lid
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. scale — size or range
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. scale — in music
  10. mate — a partner
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. mate — to breed
  13. cell — a phone
  14. cap — a hat
  15. cell — in biology
  16. rest — what's left
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. rest — what's left
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. rest — a break

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