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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: snap · stand · trunk · mine · plane · bulb · hide · tear

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. tear — to rip
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. snap — to click
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. tear — from crying
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. stand — to bear
  14. bulb — for light
  15. plane — a tool
  16. bulb — for light
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. tear — from crying
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. mine — for digging
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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