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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 · lash · prune · cabinet · safe · mark · tear · land

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. land — to come down
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. prune — to trim
  5. tear — to rip
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. tear — from crying
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. land — ground
  12. prune — to trim
  13. degree — from a university
  14. land — a country
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. degree — temperature
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. tear — from crying
  21. mark — a grade
  22. mark — a trace
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. degree — an amount

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