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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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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. degree — an amount
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. mine — for digging
  10. spell — magic
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. degree — from a university
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. deal — to handle
  18. pit — a hole
  19. pit — in a race
  20. lie — to recline
  21. degree — temperature
  22. spell — letters
  23. spell — a short time
  24. nail — on a finger

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