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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 · chest · chair · field · current · last · pound · prune

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. last — final
  4. pound — a weight
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. field — for sport
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. current — happening now
  9. prune — to trim
  10. field — farmland
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. chest — a box
  13. last — to go on
  14. chest — of your body
  15. field — a subject
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. prune — to trim
  18. current — electric
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. chair — a leader
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. last — finally
  23. current — of water
  24. chest — of your body

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