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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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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. bulb — for light
  4. wound — an injury
  5. degree — an amount
  6. degree — temperature
  7. cell — in biology
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. march — the month
  11. fine — high quality
  12. degree — from a university
  13. march — the month
  14. cell — a phone
  15. bulb — for light
  16. march — music
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. fine — all right
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. hand — help

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