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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: trunk · snap · stand · chair · net · date · fork · fall

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. date — the fruit
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. net — for catching
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. chair — a leader
  10. fall — to drop
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. net — in sport
  14. stand — to bear
  15. net — after costs
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. fork — in a road
  19. fall — to drop
  20. snap — to click
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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