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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: plane · bat · cabinet · prune · degree · mine · season · last

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. season — of the year
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. bat — the animal
  8. degree — an amount
  9. last — finally
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. last — to go on
  12. degree — from a university
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. plane — a tool
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. prune — to trim
  18. mine — for digging
  19. degree — temperature
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. last — final
  22. prune — to trim
  23. season — in sport
  24. prune — the fruit

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