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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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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: degree · key · ground · fan · dip · staff · saw · trunk

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. staff — employees
  3. saw — the tool
  4. ground — crushed
  5. key — the most important part
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. staff — a stick
  8. staff — employees
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. saw — the tool
  11. ground — a position
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. ground — the earth
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. degree — temperature
  17. key — in music
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. degree — from a university
  21. dip — to sink
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. key — for a lock
  24. fan — a supporter

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