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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 116 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: trunk · pass · pop · rock · board · band · content · cold

  1. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. content — the amount
  3. cold — an illness
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. pop — soda
  6. cold — not warm
  7. pass — a permit
  8. rock — a stone
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. band — a music group
  13. rock — music
  14. band — a ring
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. pop — to visit
  18. pop — music
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. content — happy
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. board — a committee

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