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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: trunk · field · bat · bowl · degree · bass · face · mouse

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bass — low music
  4. field — for sport
  5. field — a subject
  6. face — to confront
  7. face — part of the head
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. degree — from a university
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. degree — an amount
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. degree — temperature
  16. face — to point toward
  17. field — farmland
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. bass — the fish
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. trunk — of a tree

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