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

Word bank: hide · prune · mouse · chair · toast · deal · degree · bowl

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. degree — from a university
  3. chair — a leader
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. degree — temperature
  14. prune — to trim
  15. prune — to trim
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. deal — to handle
  24. degree — an amount

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