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

Word bank: content · board · leaves · cell · snap · trunk · dip · march

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. march — the month
  5. content — happy
  6. content — the amount
  7. board — a committee
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. snap — to click
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. dip — to sink
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. cell — a phone
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. board — to get on
  20. march — the month
  21. march — music
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. cell — in biology

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