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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: ground · leaves · bay · present · degree · trunk · rest · chest

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. ground — the earth
  3. degree — temperature
  4. degree — an amount
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. rest — what's left
  7. ground — crushed
  8. present — the time now
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. chest — of your body
  13. present — there
  14. chest — a box
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. rest — what's left
  17. chest — of your body
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. rest — a break
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. degree — from a university
  23. present — a gift
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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