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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: fork · degree · dip · stick · row · trunk · rest · capital

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. degree — temperature
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. dip — to sink
  5. row — a line
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. capital — a city
  8. fork — in a road
  9. row — to paddle
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. degree — from a university
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. rest — a break
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rest — what's left
  19. capital — money
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. degree — an amount
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. trunk — 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