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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: season · fine · trunk · toast · spring · ball · rock · degree

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. rock — music
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. toast — bread
  5. degree — an amount
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. ball — a dance
  8. season — of the year
  9. spring — of water
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. spring — the season
  12. ball — a great time
  13. spring — a coil
  14. fine — high quality
  15. degree — temperature
  16. season — in sport
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. fine — all right
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. rock — a stone
  24. fine — a penalty

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