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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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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: bark · bowl · rush · press · trunk · degree · chair · deal

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. rush — hurry
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. press — newspapers
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. degree — temperature
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. press — to push
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. degree — from a university
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. press — a publisher
  16. chair — a leader
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. deal — to handle

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