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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 · fall · tube · straw · trunk · pop · snap · field

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. field — for sport
  3. fall — to drop
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. prune — to trim
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. pop — music
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. tube — a container
  11. pop — to visit
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. fall — to drop
  15. prune — to trim
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. pop — soda
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. snap — to click
  21. field — a subject
  22. tube — the underground
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. field — farmland

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