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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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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 · craft · clip · coach · row · kick · root · fall

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. fall — the season
  3. clip — for paper
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. root — the cause
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. clip — a video
  9. fall — to drop
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. craft — a skill
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. root — of a plant
  14. row — a line
  15. clip — to cut
  16. craft — boats
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. fall — to drop
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. root — of a word
  23. row — to paddle
  24. kick — in football

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