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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. degree — an amount
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. cue — for pool
  7. spring — of water
  8. spring — the season
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. spring — a coil
  11. degree — temperature
  12. wind — moving air
  13. cue — a hint
  14. content — the amount
  15. degree — from a university
  16. fine — all right
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wind — moving air
  21. content — happy
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. cue — a signal
  24. nail — on a finger

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