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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. rock — a stone
  5. land — to come down
  6. land — ground
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. present — there
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. land — a country
  12. squash — to crush
  13. present — the time now
  14. rock — music
  15. squash — the sport
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. degree — temperature
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. degree — from a university
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. bulb — for light
  22. present — a gift
  23. bulb — for light
  24. degree — an amount

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