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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: trunk · last · bark · bay · scale · kick · lean · snap

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. lean — to bend
  3. lean — thin
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. scale — size or range
  6. kick — in football
  7. last — final
  8. last — to go on
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. snap — to click
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. scale — in music
  19. last — finally
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. bark — to shout

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