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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: track · fan · spring · court · fork · charge · trunk · degree

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. fork — in a road
  3. track — a path
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. charge — electricity
  7. spring — a coil
  8. court — for sport
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. spring — of water
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. charge — in control
  16. spring — the season
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. charge — a price
  19. track — a song
  20. court — of law
  21. court — of a king
  22. degree — temperature
  23. track — to keep track
  24. degree — an amount

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