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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · degree · kick · trunk · snap · season · fan · dip

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. dip — to sink
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. degree — an amount
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. degree — from a university
  11. degree — temperature
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. snap — to click
  15. season — in sport
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. tube — the underground
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. tube — a container
  24. kick — in football

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