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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 120 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 all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. scale — in music
  5. prune — to trim
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. pop — to visit
  8. pop — music
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. prune — to trim
  11. scale — size or range
  12. game — a match
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. cap — a hat
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. degree — temperature
  17. game — wild animals
  18. cap — of ice
  19. degree — from a university
  20. pass — a permit
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. pop — soda
  23. degree — an amount
  24. cap — a lid

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