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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: land · wound · firm · mine · cap · degree · bank · prune

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. cap — of ice
  3. firm — steady
  4. prune — to trim
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. cap — a hat
  7. degree — an amount
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. land — to come down
  10. degree — from a university
  11. bank — for money
  12. prune — to trim
  13. wound — an injury
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. bank — of a river
  16. bank — for money
  17. degree — temperature
  18. firm — decided
  19. cap — a lid
  20. land — a country
  21. wound — an injury
  22. firm — a company
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. mine — for digging

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