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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: bear · spring · mug · shower · drill · trunk · degree · present

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. present — there
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. bear — the animal
  5. spring — a coil
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. degree — temperature
  8. drill — army training
  9. mug — a face
  10. shower — to wash
  11. mug — to rob
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. mug — a cup
  14. present — a gift
  15. spring — the season
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. bear — the animal
  18. degree — from a university
  19. spring — of water
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. present — the time now
  22. shower — rain
  23. degree — an amount
  24. drill — the tool

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