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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. cap — a hat
  3. cap — of ice
  4. spring — the season
  5. mark — a trace
  6. cap — a lid
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. mark — a grade
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. degree — from a university
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. degree — an amount
  14. spring — a coil
  15. chip — for betting
  16. degree — temperature
  17. chip — to eat
  18. pit — in a race
  19. spring — of water
  20. pit — a hole
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. lean — thin
  23. stem — to come from
  24. lean — to rest against

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