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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
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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: rock · hide · trunk · degree · coach · date · mine · nail

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. rock — music
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. rock — a stone
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. degree — temperature
  14. mine — for digging
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. degree — from a university
  19. date — the fruit
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. degree — an amount
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. hide — to keep secret

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