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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: leaves · pit · cap · prune · row · field · degree · sharp

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. pit — a hole
  3. cap — a lid
  4. field — for sport
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. degree — from a university
  7. degree — temperature
  8. field — a subject
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. row — a line
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. prune — to trim
  15. field — farmland
  16. cap — of ice
  17. cap — a hat
  18. degree — an amount
  19. pit — in a race
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. row — to paddle
  23. prune — to trim
  24. leaves — of a tree

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