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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 120 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. prune — to trim
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. foot — a measure
  7. bark — to shout
  8. cell — a phone
  9. mate — to breed
  10. degree — temperature
  11. prune — to trim
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. cell — in biology
  14. mate — a friend
  15. mate — a partner
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. lie — to recline
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. degree — an amount
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. stem — to come from
  24. stem — of a plant

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