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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: bank · trunk · wound · bore · degree · root · field · land

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. field — farmland
  3. bank — for money
  4. land — to come down
  5. degree — an amount
  6. wound — an injury
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. degree — from a university
  9. bank — of a river
  10. field — for sport
  11. root — of a plant
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. bank — for money
  14. root — of a word
  15. land — ground
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. field — a subject
  18. bore — to drill
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. root — the cause
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. wound — an injury
  23. land — a country
  24. bore — to tire

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