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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. vault — a safe
  4. degree — an amount
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. race — the arms race
  10. pound — a weight
  11. race — a contest
  12. race — humankind
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. pass — a permit
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. degree — from a university
  23. degree — temperature
  24. prune — to trim

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