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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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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: leaves · trunk · band · wake · rash · pop · track · spring

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  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. track — to keep track
  2. track — a path
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. rash — hasty
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. spring — a coil
  8. spring — the season
  9. wake — a trail
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. pop — to visit
  12. spring — of water
  13. track — a song
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. rash — a series
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. band — a ring
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. pop — soda
  21. pop — music
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  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