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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. row — a line
  3. row — to paddle
  4. degree — from a university
  5. squash — the sport
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. lean — thin
  8. degree — an amount
  9. dip — to sink
  10. stem — to come from
  11. lean — to bend
  12. degree — temperature
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. squash — to crush
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. plane — a tool
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. pitcher — a jug

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