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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: rock · trunk · date · ball · clip · staff · fall · stand

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. ball — a great time
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. fall — to drop
  5. clip — for paper
  6. stand — to bear
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. staff — a stick
  11. rock — a stone
  12. fall — to drop
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. rock — music
  15. clip — a video
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. fall — the season
  19. staff — employees
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. clip — to cut
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. staff — employees
  24. ball — a dance

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