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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 · content · trunk · cap · rock · lean · wind · prune

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. wind — moving air
  5. rock — music
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. prune — to trim
  8. chest — a box
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. content — happy
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. content — the amount
  14. wind — moving air
  15. prune — to trim
  16. lean — to bend
  17. cap — a hat
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. rock — a stone
  20. lean — thin
  21. cap — of ice
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. chest — of your body
  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