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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: squash · scale · march · trunk · cell · prune · straw · bark

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. scale — size or range
  4. march — the month
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. prune — to trim
  8. prune — to trim
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. march — the month
  11. scale — in music
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. bark — to shout
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. cell — a phone
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. squash — the sport
  18. march — music
  19. cell — in biology
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. squash — to crush
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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