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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 116 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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. race — humankind
  3. chair — a leader
  4. race — a contest
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. present — a gift
  7. bank — for money
  8. race — the arms race
  9. squash — the sport
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. bank — of a river
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. pop — music
  15. degree — from a university
  16. present — the time now
  17. pop — to visit
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. bank — for money
  20. squash — to crush
  21. pop — soda
  22. degree — an amount
  23. degree — temperature
  24. present — there

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