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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: prune · degree · stock · bowl · ground · rest · fork · row

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. ground — a position
  3. row — a line
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. degree — an amount
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. degree — from a university
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. prune — to trim
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. ground — crushed
  13. ground — the earth
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. row — to paddle
  16. rest — a break
  17. stock — shares
  18. prune — to trim
  19. fork — in a road
  20. rest — what's left
  21. degree — temperature
  22. stock — goods
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. bowl — a dish

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