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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: degree · cue · leaves · fall · wave · kick · bark · trunk

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  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. trunk — of a car
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. bark — to shout
  8. degree — from a university
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. cue — a hint
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. kick — in football
  14. cue — for pool
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. fall — the season
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. cue — a signal
  19. fall — to drop
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. degree — an amount
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. fall — to drop
  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