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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: stick · shower · rock · degree · prune · patient · file · bowl

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. rock — music
  4. shower — to wash
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. prune — to trim
  7. rock — a stone
  8. shower — rain
  9. file — a tool
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. file — a line of people
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. degree — temperature
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. file — a document
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. prune — to trim
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. degree — an amount

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