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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. degree — an amount
  3. foot — a measure
  4. staff — employees
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. sharp — clever
  7. land — to come down
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. pound — a weight
  10. prune — to trim
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. staff — a stick
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. land — a country
  16. degree — from a university
  17. land — ground
  18. bulb — for light
  19. staff — employees
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. prune — to trim
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. degree — temperature

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