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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: chest · net · band · nail · prune · wound · trunk · straw

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. wound — an injury
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. prune — to trim
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. wound — an injury
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. net — for catching
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. chest — of your body
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. prune — to trim
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. net — after costs
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. chest — of your body
  21. band — a music group
  22. band — a ring
  23. chest — a box
  24. trunk — of a tree

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