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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 · can · rash · wound · leaves · last · pound · stem

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. can — a tin
  3. rash — hasty
  4. wound — an injury
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. last — to go on
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. can — to be able to
  10. wound — an injury
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. stem — to come from
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. rash — a series
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. last — finally
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. last — final
  24. leaves — 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