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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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468
Word bank
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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. pit — in a race
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. degree — temperature
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. degree — from a university
  8. degree — an amount
  9. cell — in biology
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. ground — a position
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. pit — a hole
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. cell — a phone
  19. ground — the earth
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. snap — to click
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. trunk — of a tree

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