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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. season — of the year
  7. tear — to rip
  8. degree — temperature
  9. season — in sport
  10. sharp — clever
  11. chip — to eat
  12. chip — for betting
  13. stand — to bear
  14. prune — to trim
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. prune — to trim
  17. snap — to click
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. tear — from crying
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. degree — from a university
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. tear — from crying
  24. chip — in a computer

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