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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: staff · rock · prune · degree · craft · fork · roll · race

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. race — humankind
  3. roll — a list
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. craft — a skill
  6. roll — a cake
  7. prune — to trim
  8. staff — employees
  9. staff — employees
  10. rock — a stone
  11. degree — an amount
  12. prune — to trim
  13. rock — music
  14. degree — temperature
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. fork — in a road
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. race — the arms race
  20. staff — a stick
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. degree — from a university
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. race — a contest

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