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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 tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. land — ground
  3. spring — of water
  4. land — a country
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. plane — a tool
  8. net — after costs
  9. land — to come down
  10. degree — temperature
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. branch — a division
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. stand — to bear
  16. degree — an amount
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. spring — a coil
  19. degree — from a university
  20. spring — the season
  21. net — in sport
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. net — for catching

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