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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 · squash · fall · chest · coach · cue · lean · ground

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. ground — crushed
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. ground — the earth
  5. cue — a signal
  6. chest — of your body
  7. chest — a box
  8. cue — a hint
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. squash — to crush
  11. fall — to drop
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. cue — for pool
  14. ground — a position
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. squash — the sport
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. lean — thin
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. fall — the season
  21. chest — of your body
  22. fall — to drop
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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