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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: snap · safe · march · degree · jam · season · prune · firm

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. firm — decided
  3. prune — to trim
  4. snap — to click
  5. march — the month
  6. degree — temperature
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. march — music
  11. degree — from a university
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. season — of the year
  15. firm — steady
  16. degree — an amount
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. prune — to trim
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. march — the month
  23. season — in sport
  24. prune — the fruit

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