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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 116 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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. cue — a signal
  3. degree — temperature
  4. stock — goods
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. stock — shares
  8. degree — an amount
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. bound — certain
  11. tear — from crying
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. bound — obliged
  14. bound — tied together
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. prune — to trim
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip
  19. saw — the tool
  20. degree — from a university
  21. cue — for pool
  22. saw — the tool
  23. cue — a hint
  24. stock — a soup base

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