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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  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. march — the month
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. degree — an amount
  4. ground — a position
  5. swing — music
  6. march — the month
  7. swing — in golf
  8. board — to get on
  9. ground — the earth
  10. stock — shares
  11. swing — to play on
  12. stock — goods
  13. prune — to trim
  14. march — music
  15. ground — crushed
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. degree — temperature
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. board — a committee
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. prune — to trim
  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