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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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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: net · lash · prune · lie · ground · craft · degree · tear

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. net — after costs
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. lie — to recline
  6. net — in sport
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. ground — a position
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. net — for catching
  11. ground — the earth
  12. craft — a skill
  13. degree — temperature
  14. ground — crushed
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. prune — to trim
  17. tear — to rip
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. tear — from crying
  21. degree — from a university
  22. degree — an amount
  23. tear — from crying
  24. prune — to trim

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