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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. content — the amount
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. degree — temperature
  9. lean — thin
  10. date — the fruit
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. degree — from a university
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. pitch — completely
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. lean — to bend
  20. degree — an amount
  21. content — happy
  22. bore — to drill
  23. bore — to tire
  24. branch — a division

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