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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. spring — a coil
  3. swing — music
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. swing — in golf
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. degree — from a university
  8. spring — of water
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. degree — an amount
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. chair — a leader
  13. current — happening now
  14. current — of water
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. stem — to come from
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. degree — temperature
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. current — electric
  21. spring — the season
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. swing — to play on
  24. racket — for tennis

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