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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. degree — from a university
  3. land — ground
  4. land — a country
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. degree — temperature
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. land — to come down
  9. bass — the fish
  10. pit — in a race
  11. rest — what's left
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. spell — letters
  14. spell — a short time
  15. bass — low music
  16. chip — to eat
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. rest — a break
  19. chip — for betting
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. degree — an amount
  23. pit — a hole
  24. rest — what's left

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