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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: stock · trunk · face · file · drill · chest · bank · straw

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. bank — for money
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. face — to confront
  9. drill — a practice
  10. stock — goods
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. chest — a box
  13. face — to point toward
  14. face — part of the head
  15. bank — of a river
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. chest — of your body
  18. stock — shares
  19. bank — for money
  20. chest — of your body
  21. drill — the tool
  22. file — a line of people
  23. drill — army training
  24. file — a document

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