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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: rush · prune · file · fine · degree · vault · hand · tear

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. tear — from crying
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. degree — an amount
  6. rush — hurry
  7. degree — from a university
  8. tear — from crying
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. file — a tool
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. vault — a safe
  13. hand — in cards
  14. degree — temperature
  15. fine — all right
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. prune — to trim
  18. prune — to trim
  19. tear — to rip
  20. file — a document
  21. hand — help
  22. file — a line of people
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. rush — to hurry

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