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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: trunk · season · bay · roll · hand · tube · cabinet · degree

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. roll — a cake
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. season — of the year
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. degree — an amount
  8. degree — temperature
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. hand — in cards
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. roll — a list
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. tube — a container
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. degree — from a university
  19. hand — help
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. season — in sport
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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