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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: arm · tear · plane · field · cue · cap · season · trunk

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. field — farmland
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — to rip
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cue — for pool
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. cue — a hint
  9. cap — a lid
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. cap — a hat
  12. field — for sport
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. season — of the year
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. cap — of ice
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. field — a subject
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. season — in sport
  23. plane — a tool
  24. cue — a signal

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