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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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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: racket · mark · trunk · rash · season · chest · pop · bark

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. rash — hasty
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. chest — of your body
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. season — in sport
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. chest — of your body
  12. bark — to shout
  13. pop — to visit
  14. pop — music
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. mark — a grade
  18. mark — a trace
  19. season — of the year
  20. pop — soda
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. chest — a box
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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