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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: race · trunk · mark · face · drill · lean · degree · board

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. lean — to bend
  3. race — humankind
  4. race — the arms race
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. mark — a trace
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. degree — temperature
  9. board — to get on
  10. race — a contest
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. face — part of the head
  13. drill — army training
  14. face — to confront
  15. degree — from a university
  16. drill — a practice
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. lean — thin
  19. drill — the tool
  20. board — a committee
  21. face — to point toward
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. degree — an amount
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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