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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 116 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: trunk · spell · stem · kid · lean · track · bound · last

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  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. kid — child
  2. track — a path
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. spell — a short time
  6. bound — certain
  7. last — final
  8. last — to go on
  9. bound — tied together
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. spell — magic
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. spell — letters
  16. bound — obliged
  17. track — a song
  18. track — to keep track
  19. kid — to tease
  20. lean — thin
  21. lean — to bend
  22. stem — to come from
  23. last — finally
  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