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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: wake · lie · hand · bowl · fork · dip · trunk · degree

  1. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. degree — from a university
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. degree — temperature
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. hand — help
  8. hand — in cards
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. wake — a trail
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. degree — an amount
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. lie — to recline
  20. dip — to sink
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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