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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.

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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: degree · rest · craft · patient · prune · swing · leaves · club

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. degree — from a university
  3. club — for golf
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. degree — an amount
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. swing — music
  12. swing — in golf
  13. degree — temperature
  14. club — a group
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. craft — a skill
  17. rest — a break
  18. swing — to play on
  19. prune — to trim
  20. prune — to trim
  21. rest — what's left
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. craft — boats
  24. rest — what's left

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