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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: fine · chest · suit · fork · trunk · toast · degree · saw

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. chest — of your body
  3. toast — bread
  4. degree — from a university
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. suit — in cards
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. saw — the tool
  10. chest — of your body
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. degree — temperature
  13. fork — in a road
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. saw — the tool
  16. chest — a box
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. suit — to fit
  21. fine — all right
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. fine — high quality
  24. suit — clothes

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