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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: stock · game · cell · patient · stand · nail · trunk · prune

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. game — wild animals
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. stock — goods
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. game — a match
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. prune — to trim
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. cell — a phone
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. prune — to trim
  23. stand — to bear
  24. cell — in biology

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