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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. pass — a permit
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. ground — crushed
  7. degree — temperature
  8. hand — in cards
  9. ground — the earth
  10. ground — a position
  11. dip — to sink
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. hand — help
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. last — final
  19. degree — an amount
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. last — to go on
  22. last — finally
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. degree — from a university

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