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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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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: bay · key · trunk · clip · wave · prune · degree · stick

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. clip — a video
  3. clip — to cut
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. degree — temperature
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. degree — an amount
  8. key — in music
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. prune — to trim
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. prune — to trim
  18. degree — from a university
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. key — the most important part
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. key — for a lock
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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