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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 116 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. The water is too ________________.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. firm — a company
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. cap — of ice
  5. firm — steady
  6. degree — an amount
  7. degree — from a university
  8. game — a match
  9. mug — to rob
  10. cold — an illness
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. degree — temperature
  14. stem — to come from
  15. mug — a face
  16. mug — a cup
  17. game — wild animals
  18. cap — a hat
  19. firm — decided
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. cap — a lid

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