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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. drill — a practice
  3. degree — from a university
  4. prune — to trim
  5. degree — an amount
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. pit — in a race
  8. degree — temperature
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. spring — of water
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. board — a committee
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. spring — the season
  16. board — to get on
  17. kick — in football
  18. pit — a hole
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. drill — army training
  23. drill — the tool
  24. lash — an eyelash

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