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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: nail · degree · bulb · pop · patient · pass · mine · prune

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. degree — from a university
  3. pop — to visit
  4. degree — an amount
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. bulb — for light
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. pass — a permit
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. degree — temperature
  15. pop — soda
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. mine — for digging
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. bulb — for light
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. prune — to trim
  23. prune — to trim
  24. pop — music

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