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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 116 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: snap · trunk · tube · wound · season · march · chair · board

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. wound — an injury
  3. season — of the year
  4. tube — the underground
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. board — a committee
  7. chair — a leader
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. board — to get on
  12. season — in sport
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. wound — an injury
  16. tube — a container
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. snap — to click
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. march — the month
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. march — music
  24. tube — in a tire

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