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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. staff — employees
  3. prune — to trim
  4. track — to keep track
  5. track — a path
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. staff — a stick
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. snap — to click
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. prune — to trim
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. lie — to recline
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. degree — from a university
  19. track — a song
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. staff — employees
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. degree — temperature

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