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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. degree — temperature
  3. spell — a short time
  4. prune — to trim
  5. club — for golf
  6. degree — an amount
  7. can — to be able to
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. race — humankind
  11. race — the arms race
  12. bound — obliged
  13. can — a tin
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. club — a group
  16. spell — magic
  17. race — a contest
  18. prune — to trim
  19. bound — certain
  20. bound — tied together
  21. spell — letters
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. can — a tin
  24. degree — from a university

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