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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 120 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: trunk · straw · stock · tear · craft · perch · snap · content

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. craft — boats
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. perch — the fish
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. tear — from crying
  9. stock — goods
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. craft — a skill
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. content — the amount
  15. snap — to click
  16. tear — to rip
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. content — happy
  21. stock — shares
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. tear — from crying

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