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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 120 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: mate · degree · craft · chest · bay · prune · bat · pitcher

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. chest — a box
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. mate — to breed
  6. mate — a partner
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. prune — to trim
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. degree — an amount
  11. chest — of your body
  12. bat — the animal
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. chest — of your body
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. prune — to trim
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. craft — a skill
  20. degree — temperature
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. mate — a friend
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. craft — boats

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