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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 university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. degree — temperature
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. rush — hurry
  7. staff — employees
  8. pop — music
  9. staff — a stick
  10. pop — to visit
  11. staff — employees
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — to trim
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. pop — soda
  18. roll — a list
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. sharp — clever
  21. roll — a cake
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. degree — an amount
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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