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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: pitcher · bank · chest · hand · lean · wake · swing · trunk

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. chest — of your body
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. lean — to bend
  5. wake — a trail
  6. chest — of your body
  7. hand — help
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. chest — a box
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. swing — to play on
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. swing — in golf
  19. bank — of a river
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. bank — for money
  22. hand — in cards
  23. bank — for money
  24. lean — thin

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