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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: chest · fork · hand · nail · stick · trunk · tear · stand

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. chest — of your body
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. tear — to rip
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. chest — of your body
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. chest — a box
  10. hand — in cards
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. hand — help
  14. fork — in a road
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. stand — to bear
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. tear — from crying
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. tear — from crying

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