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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: cabinet · prune · chair · stand · fan · bark · sharp · degree

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. prune — to trim
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. bark — to shout
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. sharp — clever
  10. stand — to bear
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. degree — an amount
  14. prune — to trim
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. degree — temperature
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. degree — from a university
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. stand — on your feet

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