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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: stick · trunk · chest · net · bank · tear · row · last

  1. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. row — a line
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. bank — for money
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. bank — for money
  7. last — finally
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. chest — of your body
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. net — in sport
  12. row — to paddle
  13. bank — of a river
  14. last — final
  15. tear — from crying
  16. chest — a box
  17. chest — of your body
  18. last — to go on
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. net — after costs
  21. tear — to rip
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. tear — from crying
  24. net — for catching

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