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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: roll · trunk · prune · coach · wind · tube · snap · squash

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. roll — a list
  3. snap — to click
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. tube — a container
  9. squash — the sport
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. tube — the underground
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. squash — to crush
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. roll — a cake
  22. wind — moving air
  23. prune — to trim
  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