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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. wake — a trail
  3. degree — an amount
  4. season — in sport
  5. stem — to come from
  6. wound — an injury
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. present — a gift
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. present — there
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. pass — a permit
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. present — the time now
  20. degree — temperature
  21. pop — music
  22. pop — to visit
  23. pop — soda
  24. season — of the year

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