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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 120 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 · fork · wake · cue · net · firm · squash · march

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. cue — a signal
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. firm — a company
  5. net — for catching
  6. march — the month
  7. squash — to crush
  8. cue — for pool
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. squash — the sport
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. net — after costs
  14. cue — a hint
  15. firm — steady
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. net — in sport
  18. march — music
  19. firm — decided
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. fork — in a road
  22. wake — a trail
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. march — the month

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