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

Word bank: mate · trunk · cabinet · capital · cell · degree · fork · race

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. race — humankind
  5. mate — to breed
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. capital — a city
  8. mate — a friend
  9. degree — temperature
  10. fork — in a road
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. mate — a partner
  14. capital — money
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. cell — a phone
  17. cell — in biology
  18. race — a contest
  19. degree — an amount
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. degree — from a university
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. cell — in a prison

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