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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. prune — to trim
  7. field — for sport
  8. degree — temperature
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. prune — to trim
  11. last — finally
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. last — to go on
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. degree — an amount
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. toast — bread
  20. last — final
  21. field — a subject
  22. stem — to come from
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. field — farmland

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