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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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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: object · shower · degree · mate · prune · content · racket · march

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. object — to protest
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. shower — rain
  6. march — music
  7. content — happy
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. shower — to wash
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. object — a thing
  12. content — the amount
  13. prune — to trim
  14. degree — from a university
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. march — the month
  17. degree — an amount
  18. object — an aim
  19. march — the month
  20. mate — a partner
  21. prune — to trim
  22. mate — to breed
  23. mate — a friend
  24. degree — temperature

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