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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: dip · degree · deal · row · current · cabinet · sharp · prune

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. current — electric
  4. prune — to trim
  5. prune — to trim
  6. degree — an amount
  7. row — a line
  8. current — of water
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. row — to paddle
  11. degree — temperature
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. sharp — clever
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. current — happening now
  19. deal — to handle
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. dip — to sink
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. degree — from a university

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