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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 116 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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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: track · degree · fine · fall · prune · wake · pound · bank

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fall — to drop
  6. degree — an amount
  7. prune — to trim
  8. bank — for money
  9. wake — a trail
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. pound — a weight
  12. prune — to trim
  13. track — to keep track
  14. fine — high quality
  15. degree — temperature
  16. fine — all right
  17. fall — the season
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. track — a path
  20. bank — of a river
  21. track — a song
  22. bank — for money
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. pound — to hit hard

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