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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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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: key · bark · band · trunk · mouse · cold · foot · fine

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. band — a ring
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. bark — to shout
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. fine — all right
  15. cold — not warm
  16. key — in music
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. key — for a lock
  19. key — the most important part
  20. foot — a measure
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. fine — high quality
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. band — a music group

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