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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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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: straw · board · trunk · pop · mug · prune · perch · hand

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. hand — in cards
  5. mug — a cup
  6. prune — to trim
  7. pop — music
  8. mug — to rob
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. prune — to trim
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. perch — the fish
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. board — to get on
  17. pop — to visit
  18. mug — a face
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. pop — soda
  21. board — a committee
  22. hand — help
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. straw — a straw man

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