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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. field — farmland
  3. field — a subject
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. ground — the earth
  7. board — a committee
  8. pitch — completely
  9. board — to get on
  10. degree — an amount
  11. field — for sport
  12. ground — crushed
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. degree — temperature
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. ground — a position
  17. degree — from a university
  18. pitch — a sports field

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