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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: tube · ball · drill · trunk · degree · net · press · temple

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. press — to push
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. net — for catching
  6. tube — the underground
  7. drill — a practice
  8. drill — army training
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. degree — an amount
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. drill — the tool
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. press — a publisher
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. net — in sport
  18. press — newspapers
  19. ball — a great time
  20. net — after costs
  21. ball — a dance
  22. tube — a container
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. degree — temperature

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