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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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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: cap · trunk · present · staff · hand · stock · row · swing

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. swing — to play on
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. row — a line
  5. hand — in cards
  6. staff — a stick
  7. cap — a lid
  8. present — a gift
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. row — to paddle
  11. staff — employees
  12. cap — of ice
  13. swing — music
  14. stock — shares
  15. stock — goods
  16. present — the time now
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. cap — a hat
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. hand — help
  21. swing — in golf
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. present — there
  24. staff — employees

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