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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: trunk · mark · bat · club · file · field · content · toast

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. toast — bread
  4. field — farmland
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. club — for dancing
  7. field — for sport
  8. file — a tool
  9. bat — the animal
  10. club — for golf
  11. file — a document
  12. mark — a trace
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. content — the amount
  15. file — a line of people
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. club — a group
  19. content — happy
  20. field — a subject
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. bat — in an idiom
  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