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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 116 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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. degree — an amount
  3. march — the month
  4. degree — from a university
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. march — music
  9. bank — for money
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. ball — a dance
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. chair — a leader
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. ball — a great time
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. bank — for money
  19. march — the month
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. bank — of a river
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. mine — for digging
  24. deal — to handle

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