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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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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: hide · patient · stick · kid · trunk · fork · stock · chest

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. stock — shares
  3. kid — to tease
  4. chest — of your body
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. fork — in a road
  12. stock — goods
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. kid — child
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. chest — of your body
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. chest — a box

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