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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: trunk · sharp · bear · pop · lie · last · stem · jam

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. last — final
  3. pop — soda
  4. bear — the animal
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. stem — to come from
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. lie — to recline
  10. pop — to visit
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. pop — music
  16. sharp — clever
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. last — finally
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. last — to go on
  22. bear — the animal
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. sharp — with an edge

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