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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: date · trunk · stem · straw · cabinet · lean · stick · capital

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. capital — money
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. stem — to come from
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. date — the fruit
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. lean — thin
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. lean — to bend
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. capital — a city

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