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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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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. degree — from a university
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. degree — an amount
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. lie — to recline
  13. stem — to come from
  14. saw — the tool
  15. saw — the tool
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. fork — in a road
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. degree — temperature
  24. pitch — completely

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