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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. wind — moving air
  4. march — music
  5. degree — from a university
  6. wind — moving air
  7. degree — an amount
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. kick — in football
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — finally
  12. march — the month
  13. march — the month
  14. prune — to trim
  15. degree — temperature
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. prune — to trim
  18. foot — a measure
  19. last — final
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. stem — to come from
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. foot — part of the body

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