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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: cue · trunk · stick · row · coach · last · chip · leaves

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. row — a line
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. cue — a hint
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. cue — a signal
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. chip — to eat
  12. chip — for betting
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. last — finally
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. last — to go on
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. row — to paddle
  20. cue — for pool
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. last — final

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