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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. stock — goods
  3. degree — from a university
  4. bank — for money
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. shower — to wash
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. stock — shares
  9. degree — an amount
  10. cue — a signal
  11. shower — rain
  12. prune — to trim
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. cue — for pool
  16. bank — of a river
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. cue — a hint
  19. mine — for digging
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. prune — to trim
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. bank — for money
  24. stock — a soup base

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