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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: arm · spring · trunk · roll · prune · snap · coach · fan

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. prune — to trim
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. spring — the season
  9. spring — a coil
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. roll — a list
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. roll — a cake
  21. snap — to click
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. spring — of water

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