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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: chest · craft · trunk · stem · perch · last · toast · firm

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. firm — decided
  4. last — final
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. craft — boats
  7. firm — a company
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. last — finally
  10. chest — of your body
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — the fish
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. stem — to come from
  16. chest — a box
  17. chest — of your body
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. craft — a skill
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. toast — bread
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. firm — steady

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