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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 116 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: prune · trunk · perch · bark · staff · last · hand · straw

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. bark — to shout
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. prune — to trim
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. staff — employees
  12. last — to go on
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. last — finally
  17. last — final
  18. perch — the fish
  19. staff — employees
  20. staff — a stick
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hand — help

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