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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: trunk · wave · roll · prune · pitcher · tear · staff · pass

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. staff — a stick
  8. staff — employees
  9. roll — a list
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. pass — a permit
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. prune — to trim
  15. tear — to rip
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. roll — a cake
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. prune — to trim
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — from crying
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. pitcher — a jug

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