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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: lie · kid · trunk · deal · degree · club · race · bark

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. race — a contest
  3. race — humankind
  4. club — a group
  5. degree — temperature
  6. degree — an amount
  7. kid — to tease
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. kid — child
  11. lie — to recline
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. club — for dancing
  16. deal — to handle
  17. race — the arms race
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. club — for golf
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. bark — to shout
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. degree — from a university
  24. bark — of a tree

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