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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: leaves · ground · cap · tube · march · season · degree · prune

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. prune — to trim
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. cap — a lid
  5. tube — a container
  6. prune — to trim
  7. cap — of ice
  8. season — of the year
  9. season — in sport
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. march — music
  12. degree — from a university
  13. cap — a hat
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. ground — a position
  16. march — the month
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. degree — an amount
  19. tube — the underground
  20. march — the month
  21. ground — the earth
  22. degree — temperature
  23. ground — crushed
  24. leaves — of a tree

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