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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: trunk · racket · band · calf · saw · mate · hand · wind

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. band — a ring
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. wind — moving air
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. mate — a friend
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. mate — to breed
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. wind — moving air
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. mate — a partner
  20. saw — the tool
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. hand — in cards
  23. saw — the tool
  24. hand — help

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