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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: prune · degree · present · fork · bass · pit · wake · hide

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. degree — temperature
  4. present — a gift
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. degree — from a university
  7. degree — an amount
  8. bass — low music
  9. fork — in a road
  10. wake — a trail
  11. prune — to trim
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. prune — to trim
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. present — the time now
  21. pit — a hole
  22. present — there
  23. pit — in a race
  24. bass — the fish

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