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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: last · trunk · racket · season · pop · foot · current · scale

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. foot — a measure
  4. current — happening now
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. last — final
  7. season — of the year
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. season — in sport
  11. current — electric
  12. current — of water
  13. pop — soda
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. pop — music
  17. scale — size or range
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. scale — in music
  22. pop — to visit
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. last — to go on

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