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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: prune · leaves · deal · stock · foot · degree · content · spring

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. deal — to handle
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. foot — a measure
  7. prune — to trim
  8. degree — temperature
  9. spring — a coil
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. content — the amount
  14. content — happy
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. degree — from a university
  17. stock — goods
  18. spring — the season
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. spring — of water
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. degree — an amount
  23. stock — shares
  24. stock — a soup base

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