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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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. rash — hasty
  3. degree — an amount
  4. charge — electricity
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. charge — a price
  7. rock — a stone
  8. degree — temperature
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. degree — from a university
  12. wound — an injury
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. charge — in control
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. rock — music
  19. wound — an injury
  20. saw — the tool
  21. stem — to come from
  22. rash — a series
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. saw — the tool

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