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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: clip · nail · degree · tube · ground · pitcher · trunk · lash

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. ground — the earth
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. tube — a container
  6. clip — to cut
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. degree — an amount
  11. clip — a video
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. ground — a position
  15. tube — the underground
  16. clip — for paper
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. ground — crushed
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. degree — temperature
  21. degree — from a university
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. trunk — of a tree

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