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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · row · stem · squash · lie · trunk · chest · capital

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. chest — a box
  3. squash — to crush
  4. stock — shares
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. row — a line
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. chest — of your body
  11. stem — to come from
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. lie — to recline
  14. capital — a city
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. squash — the sport
  17. stock — goods
  18. row — to paddle
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. chest — of your body
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. capital — money

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