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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.

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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: trunk · pit · lash · bowl · degree · rush · cold · ruler

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. pit — a hole
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. pit — in a race
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. degree — an amount
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. cold — an illness
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. cold — not warm
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. degree — from a university
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. degree — temperature
  21. rush — hurry
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. rush — a thrill

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