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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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. degree — from a university
  4. staff — a stick
  5. drill — the tool
  6. present — a gift
  7. degree — temperature
  8. drill — army training
  9. hand — help
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. drill — a practice
  13. staff — employees
  14. present — there
  15. hand — in cards
  16. cell — in biology
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. cell — a phone
  19. staff — employees
  20. degree — an amount
  21. present — the time now
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. hide — to keep secret

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