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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. bat — the animal
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. cold — an illness
  10. cold — not warm
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. tube — a container
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. bark — to shout
  16. board — a committee
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. tube — the underground
  21. board — to get on
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. board — a flat piece

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