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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. snap — to click
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. stand — to bear
  5. rash — a series
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. prune — to trim
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. bore — to drill
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. degree — temperature
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. fork — in a road
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bore — to tire
  22. degree — from a university
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. rash — hasty

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