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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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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: mine · pop · degree · vault · date · firm · trunk · rash

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. firm — steady
  3. date — the fruit
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. firm — a company
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. degree — an amount
  10. degree — temperature
  11. pop — soda
  12. pop — music
  13. firm — decided
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. degree — from a university
  17. pop — to visit
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. vault — a safe
  20. rash — a series
  21. mine — for digging
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. rash — hasty
  24. date — on the calendar

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