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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: land · mark · content · bank · roll · prune · hide · degree

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  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. content — videos and posts
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. prune — to trim
  4. content — happy
  5. bank — of a river
  6. prune — to trim
  7. land — a country
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. roll — a cake
  11. degree — an amount
  12. mark — a grade
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. bank — for money
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. content — the amount
  17. degree — from a university
  18. land — ground
  19. bank — for money
  20. mark — a trace
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. land — to come down
  23. roll — a list
  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