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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. mug — to rob
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. fall — to drop
  5. prune — to trim
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. deal — to handle
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. fall — to drop
  11. degree — an amount
  12. degree — from a university
  13. perch — the fish
  14. degree — temperature
  15. fall — the season
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. mug — a cup
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. date — the fruit
  21. mug — a face
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. bowl — a dish

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