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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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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: file · chair · prune · track · mate · degree · rest · season

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. track — a song
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. mate — a friend
  6. track — to keep track
  7. track — a path
  8. rest — what's left
  9. degree — an amount
  10. prune — to trim
  11. file — a document
  12. file — a tool
  13. degree — from a university
  14. prune — to trim
  15. rest — what's left
  16. season — in sport
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. rest — a break
  19. file — a line of people
  20. mate — to breed
  21. mate — a partner
  22. chair — a leader
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. season — of the year

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