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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 116 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 university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. cell — in biology
  3. cell — a phone
  4. prune — to trim
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. prune — to trim
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. degree — an amount
  9. degree — temperature
  10. net — after costs
  11. content — the amount
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. net — for catching
  14. net — in sport
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. ball — a great time
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. lean — thin
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. lean — to bend
  21. content — happy
  22. ball — a dance
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. cell — in a prison

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