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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: bore · file · kick · coach · race · band · trunk · degree

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. file — a line of people
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. race — a contest
  5. degree — an amount
  6. bore — to drill
  7. file — a tool
  8. degree — temperature
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. race — humankind
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. file — a document
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. bore — to tire
  17. band — a ring
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. race — the arms race
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. kick — in football
  24. band — a music group

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