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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: degree · date · nail · club · content · bore · arm · prune

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. club — for golf
  3. club — a group
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. degree — temperature
  7. degree — from a university
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. prune — to trim
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. bore — to drill
  13. club — for dancing
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. date — the fruit
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. degree — an amount
  18. content — happy
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. bore — to tire
  21. content — the amount
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. content — videos and posts
  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