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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · court · bark · snap · stock · prune · band · plane

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. bark — to shout
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. plane — a tool
  6. band — a ring
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. court — of a king
  9. prune — to trim
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. snap — to click
  17. court — of law
  18. band — a music group
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. stock — shares
  21. prune — to trim
  22. stock — goods
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. stock — a soup base

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