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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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468
Word bank
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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. prune — to trim
  4. capital — money
  5. degree — from a university
  6. degree — temperature
  7. degree — an amount
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. capital — a city
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. content — happy
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. saw — the tool
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. saw — the tool
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. snap — to click

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