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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. degree — an amount
  3. prune — to trim
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. mate — a friend
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. race — the arms race
  10. ball — a dance
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. prune — to trim
  13. mate — a partner
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. pit — a hole
  16. race — humankind
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. ball — a great time
  19. race — a contest
  20. pit — in a race
  21. mate — to breed
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. degree — temperature
  24. cabinet — ministers

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