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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: stock · bear · wind · lie · bass · chest · patient · trunk

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. chest — of your body
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. bass — low music
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. stock — shares
  10. bear — the animal
  11. chest — a box
  12. stock — goods
  13. wind — moving air
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. lie — to recline
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. chest — of your body
  22. bass — the fish
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. wind — moving air

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