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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. wind — moving air
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. degree — from a university
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. bark — to shout
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. cap — a lid
  15. fork — in a road
  16. cap — a hat
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. wind — moving air
  19. degree — temperature
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. toast — bread
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. cap — of ice

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