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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: cabinet · saw · pop · present · ground · trunk · lean · chest

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. lean — thin
  3. pop — music
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. ground — crushed
  6. present — there
  7. saw — the tool
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. ground — the earth
  12. present — the time now
  13. pop — to visit
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. lean — to bend
  16. ground — a position
  17. chest — of your body
  18. present — a gift
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. pop — soda
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. chest — a box
  24. saw — the tool

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