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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 120 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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. prune — to trim
  4. prune — to trim
  5. ground — a position
  6. mate — a partner
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. fine — high quality
  9. mate — to breed
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. ground — the earth
  12. degree — from a university
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. row — a line
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. mate — a friend
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. march — music
  19. march — the month
  20. degree — temperature
  21. degree — an amount
  22. ground — crushed
  23. row — to paddle
  24. fine — all right

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