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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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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: prune · land · pound · degree · staff · chip · field · mug

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. land — a country
  3. mug — a face
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. staff — employees
  6. field — for sport
  7. prune — to trim
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. degree — from a university
  10. staff — a stick
  11. chip — for betting
  12. field — farmland
  13. mug — a cup
  14. chip — to eat
  15. field — a subject
  16. prune — to trim
  17. degree — temperature
  18. land — ground
  19. pound — a weight
  20. staff — employees
  21. land — to come down
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. mug — to rob
  24. degree — an amount

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