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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 ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. race — humankind
  3. prune — to trim
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. degree — temperature
  6. spring — of water
  7. prune — to trim
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. race — a contest
  11. degree — an amount
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. race — the arms race
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. spring — the season
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. bore — to tire
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. bore — to drill
  22. spring — a coil
  23. degree — from a university
  24. fork — in a road

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