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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 116 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: plane · mine · fan · trunk · kid · wound · staff · wake

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. mine — for digging
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. plane — a tool
  7. wound — an injury
  8. staff — employees
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. kid — child
  12. staff — employees
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. staff — a stick
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. kid — to tease
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. wake — a trail

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