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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: fork · degree · swing · wave · shower · temple · spring · prune

  1. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. swing — to play on
  6. degree — from a university
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. spring — of water
  9. swing — music
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. spring — a coil
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. prune — to trim
  14. spring — the season
  15. degree — temperature
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. shower — rain
  20. shower — to wash
  21. fork — in a road
  22. degree — an amount
  23. prune — to trim
  24. wave — of the sea

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