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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: wind · rule · ground · degree · wave · trunk · land · mouse

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. land — a country
  3. ground — a position
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. land — to come down
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. degree — an amount
  13. land — ground
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. ground — the earth
  17. wind — moving air
  18. degree — from a university
  19. rule — government
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. rule — a law
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. ground — crushed

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