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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. field — farmland
  3. prune — to trim
  4. field — for sport
  5. degree — temperature
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. club — for dancing
  8. dip — to sink
  9. pit — in a race
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. pass — a permit
  12. club — for golf
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. field — a subject
  16. squash — the sport
  17. squash — to crush
  18. degree — from a university
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. pit — a hole
  22. prune — to trim
  23. degree — an amount
  24. club — a group

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