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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: prune · calf · stem · degree · last · sharp · toast · ball

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. last — to go on
  5. stem — to come from
  6. last — final
  7. degree — from a university
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. ball — a great time
  10. ball — a dance
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. degree — temperature
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — to trim
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. toast — bread
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. degree — an amount
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. sharp — clever
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. last — finally
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. calf — a young animal

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