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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: trunk · rush · plane · chair · stem · swing · game · scale

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. swing — in golf
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. chair — a leader
  10. scale — size or range
  11. game — wild animals
  12. plane — a tool
  13. rush — hurry
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. swing — music
  16. swing — to play on
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. scale — in music
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. stem — to come from
  24. chair — to sit on

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