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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. degree — from a university
  3. fine — high quality
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. fine — all right
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. mine — for digging
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. perch — the fish
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. prune — to trim
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. season — in sport
  16. degree — an amount
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. season — of the year
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. pass — a permit
  22. degree — temperature
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. perch — for a bird

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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