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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. row — to paddle
  3. tear — to rip
  4. degree — an amount
  5. degree — temperature
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. pop — soda
  8. prune — to trim
  9. tear — from crying
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. bound — obliged
  12. swing — to play on
  13. pop — music
  14. bound — tied together
  15. tear — from crying
  16. prune — to trim
  17. bound — certain
  18. rock — music
  19. degree — from a university
  20. pop — to visit
  21. row — a line
  22. swing — in golf
  23. rock — a stone
  24. row — a quarrel

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