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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. shower — rain
  7. shower — to wash
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. fork — in a road
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. squash — to crush
  13. squash — the sport
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. stem — to come from
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. chair — a leader
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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