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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 smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. degree — an amount
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. degree — from a university
  6. degree — temperature
  7. stock — goods
  8. bark — to shout
  9. race — a contest
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. mark — a grade
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. kid — to tease
  14. mark — a trace
  15. stock — shares
  16. kid — child
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. prune — to trim
  20. race — humankind
  21. stand — to bear
  22. race — the arms race
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. prune — to trim

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