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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: plane · capital · pass · rest · cold · trunk · band · racket

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. pass — a permit
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. capital — money
  7. band — a music group
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. capital — a city
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. rest — a break
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. rest — what's left
  18. plane — a tool
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. band — a ring
  21. cold — an illness
  22. rest — what's left
  23. cold — not warm
  24. racket — for tennis

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