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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 120 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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: trunk · chest · prune · snap · mate · wake · drill · band

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. mate — to breed
  3. drill — the tool
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. mate — a friend
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. wake — a trail
  11. drill — army training
  12. chest — of your body
  13. snap — to click
  14. mate — a partner
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. drill — a practice
  17. chest — a box
  18. band — a music group
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. prune — to trim
  21. band — a ring
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. prune — to trim
  24. trunk — of a car

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