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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 120 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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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: bore · object · march · dip · clip · degree · trunk · fine

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. degree — from a university
  3. bore — to drill
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. bore — to tire
  6. clip — for paper
  7. clip — to cut
  8. dip — to sink
  9. march — music
  10. degree — an amount
  11. march — the month
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. clip — a video
  16. fine — all right
  17. march — the month
  18. object — to protest
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. object — an aim
  21. degree — temperature
  22. fine — high quality
  23. object — a thing
  24. fine — a penalty

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