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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 120 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: leaves · trunk · saw · row · degree · chair · cap · deal

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. deal — to handle
  3. cap — of ice
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. degree — from a university
  6. saw — the tool
  7. degree — temperature
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. saw — the tool
  10. row — to paddle
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. cap — a lid
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. cap — a hat
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. chair — a leader
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. degree — an amount
  24. row — a line

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