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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 116 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: shower · trunk · rule · game · sharp · rush · degree · fine

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. degree — an amount
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. rule — a law
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. shower — to wash
  9. degree — temperature
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. game — wild animals
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. fine — high quality
  16. rule — government
  17. fine — all right
  18. shower — rain
  19. rush — hurry
  20. degree — from a university
  21. sharp — clever
  22. game — a match
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. rule — to rule out

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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