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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. degree — from a university
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. degree — an amount
  6. wind — moving air
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. wind — moving air
  9. prune — to trim
  10. stem — to come from
  11. toast — bread
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. ball — a dance
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. prune — to trim
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. lie — to recline
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. ball — a great time
  21. degree — temperature
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. bore — to drill
  24. bore — to tire

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