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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. cap — of ice
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. fine — high quality
  5. cap — a lid
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. degree — temperature
  8. can — to be able to
  9. can — a tin
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. object — a thing
  13. object — an aim
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. can — a tin
  16. fine — all right
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. dip — to sink
  21. degree — from a university
  22. stem — to come from
  23. cap — a hat
  24. degree — an amount

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