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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: degree · club · stock · cue · bowl · game · hide · prune

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. degree — an amount
  3. club — for golf
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. game — wild animals
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. degree — from a university
  10. cue — a signal
  11. club — a group
  12. cue — a hint
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. stock — goods
  15. game — a match
  16. degree — temperature
  17. club — for dancing
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. prune — to trim
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. stock — shares
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. cue — for pool

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