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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: prune · field · rock · sharp · stand · trunk · clip · chair

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. rock — music
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. clip — a video
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. sharp — clever
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. clip — for paper
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. field — a subject
  14. chair — a leader
  15. rock — a stone
  16. field — farmland
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. prune — to trim
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. clip — to cut
  21. field — for sport
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. prune — to trim
  24. sharp — with an edge

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