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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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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: cap · track · fork · pit · prune · dip · racket · degree

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. cap — a hat
  4. prune — to trim
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. fork — in a road
  8. degree — an amount
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. cap — a lid
  11. track — a song
  12. degree — temperature
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. degree — from a university
  15. pit — a hole
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. track — to keep track
  18. pit — in a race
  19. cap — of ice
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. track — a path
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. dip — to sink

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