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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. degree — an amount
  3. game — wild animals
  4. mate — a friend
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. bass — the fish
  7. rest — what's left
  8. net — for catching
  9. cap — of ice
  10. cap — a hat
  11. rest — what's left
  12. net — after costs
  13. mate — to breed
  14. degree — temperature
  15. cap — a lid
  16. mate — a partner
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. degree — from a university
  19. game — a match
  20. net — in sport
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. rest — a break
  23. bass — low music
  24. game — a kind of play

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