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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 · leaves · bat · deal · lean · prune · bay · bowl

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. bat — the animal
  3. prune — to trim
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. degree — an amount
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. degree — from a university
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. degree — temperature
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. lean — to bend
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. prune — to trim
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. deal — to handle
  24. leaves — of a tree

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