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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: ball · cold · rash · dip · board · trunk · prune · chest

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. dip — to sink
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. board — a committee
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. rash — hasty
  10. cold — not warm
  11. prune — to trim
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. chest — a box
  14. cold — an illness
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. ball — a dance
  17. board — to get on
  18. ball — a great time
  19. prune — to trim
  20. chest — of your body
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. chest — of your body
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. dip — to dunk

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