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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 · prune · pitcher · object · scale · cabinet · hand · chair

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. object — an aim
  4. object — a thing
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. hand — help
  7. scale — size or range
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. degree — an amount
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. degree — from a university
  13. object — to protest
  14. hand — in cards
  15. prune — to trim
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. degree — temperature
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. chair — a leader
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. scale — in music
  23. chair — to sit on
  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