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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. bank — for money
  4. bank — of a river
  5. pop — soda
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. spell — magic
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. pop — to visit
  16. bank — for money
  17. spell — a short time
  18. pop — music
  19. spell — letters
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. stem — to come from
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. rush — hurry

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