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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. prune — to trim
  3. ground — the earth
  4. mate — to breed
  5. firm — decided
  6. degree — from a university
  7. degree — an amount
  8. firm — a company
  9. ground — a position
  10. degree — temperature
  11. shower — to wash
  12. shower — rain
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — an injury
  15. mate — a partner
  16. ground — crushed
  17. club — for dancing
  18. prune — to trim
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. club — for golf
  22. mate — a friend
  23. firm — steady
  24. prune — the fruit

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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