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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: row · racket · mug · pit · degree · prune · mine · swing

  1. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. degree — an amount
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. mine — for digging
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mug — a cup
  9. row — a line
  10. degree — temperature
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. prune — to trim
  13. row — to paddle
  14. prune — to trim
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. degree — from a university
  17. swing — music
  18. swing — to play on
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. swing — in golf
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. pit — in a race
  23. mug — a face
  24. pit — a hole

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