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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: degree · snap · game · trunk · pound · cell · pitch · dip

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. cell — in biology
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. pound — a weight
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. degree — temperature
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. snap — to click
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. game — wild animals
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. cell — a phone
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. dip — to sink
  19. degree — an amount
  20. game — a match
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. degree — from a university
  23. pitch — completely
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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