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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: foot · last · wake · band · trunk · bark · charge · mine

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. band — a ring
  10. last — final
  11. wake — a trail
  12. bark — to shout
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. mine — for digging
  15. charge — electricity
  16. last — to go on
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. band — a music group
  21. charge — in control
  22. charge — a price
  23. foot — a measure
  24. last — finally

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