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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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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: bear · prune · court · degree · row · rest · stock · race

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. prune — to trim
  3. court — of a king
  4. race — humankind
  5. prune — to trim
  6. row — to paddle
  7. race — the arms race
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. bear — the animal
  11. race — a contest
  12. court — of law
  13. court — for sport
  14. stock — goods
  15. degree — temperature
  16. rest — what's left
  17. stock — shares
  18. row — a line
  19. degree — an amount
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. rest — a break
  22. bear — the animal
  23. rest — what's left
  24. degree — from a university

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