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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. scale — in music
  3. date — the fruit
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. scale — size or range
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. lean — to bend
  8. degree — temperature
  9. content — the amount
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. degree — from a university
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. prune — to trim
  14. clip — for paper
  15. content — happy
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. degree — an amount
  19. clip — a video
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. clip — to cut
  24. lean — thin

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