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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 tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. degree — temperature
  5. drill — a practice
  6. fine — high quality
  7. drill — the tool
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. tear — from crying
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. mine — for digging
  12. root — of a word
  13. root — of a plant
  14. degree — from a university
  15. tear — from crying
  16. root — the cause
  17. drill — army training
  18. fine — all right
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. tear — to rip
  23. degree — an amount
  24. mine — belonging to me

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