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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: race · cell · pop · trunk · racket · straw

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. cell — in biology
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. race — humankind
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. race — a contest
  8. pop — to visit
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. cell — a phone
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. pop — music
  17. race — the arms race
  18. pop — soda

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