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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: roll · arm · degree · trunk · present · land · capital · track

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. land — ground
  4. roll — a list
  5. capital — money
  6. present — the time now
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. track — a path
  10. land — to come down
  11. roll — a cake
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. present — a gift
  14. capital — a city
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. degree — an amount
  17. degree — from a university
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. present — there
  20. land — a country
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. degree — temperature
  23. track — to keep track
  24. roll — on a roll

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