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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: calf · cold · chest · trunk · jam · stick · staff · stock

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. stock — shares
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. chest — of your body
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. staff — employees
  9. chest — a box
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. chest — of your body
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. staff — employees
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. cold — an illness
  21. stock — goods
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. cold — not warm
  24. staff — a stick

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