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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: wake · prune · degree · club · trunk · march · squash · arm

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. march — the month
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. degree — an amount
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. club — a group
  12. squash — to crush
  13. club — for golf
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. squash — the sport
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. march — the month
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. prune — to trim
  20. degree — temperature
  21. march — music
  22. club — for dancing
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. wake — a trail

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