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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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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: bowl · drill · stock · rash · degree · ball · prune · mark

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. ball — a great time
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. drill — the tool
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. drill — a practice
  9. degree — temperature
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. degree — an amount
  12. mark — a trace
  13. stock — goods
  14. mark — a grade
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. prune — to trim
  18. ball — a dance
  19. stock — shares
  20. rash — a series
  21. degree — from a university
  22. prune — to trim
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. drill — army training

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