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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: prune · pound · trunk · degree · craft · chest · stand · wax

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. stand — to bear
  6. degree — from a university
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. degree — an amount
  10. prune — to trim
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. craft — boats
  15. pound — a weight
  16. chest — of your body
  17. wax — to grow
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. degree — temperature
  20. chest — a box
  21. craft — a skill
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. prune — to trim

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