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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: degree · straw · vault · court · prune · stem · tear · safe

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. tear — to rip
  4. degree — an amount
  5. court — of a king
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. stem — to come from
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. tear — from crying
  11. prune — to trim
  12. court — for sport
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. prune — to trim
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. degree — from a university
  18. vault — a safe
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. degree — temperature
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. tear — from crying

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