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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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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: staff · chest · coach · pound · stick · trunk · wake · last

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. chest — a box
  5. pound — a weight
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. staff — employees
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. wake — a trail
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. last — finally
  12. last — final
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. last — to go on
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. staff — a stick
  19. chest — of your body
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. staff — employees
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. chest — of your body
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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