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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 120 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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. degree — from a university
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. degree — an amount
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. net — after costs
  7. ground — the earth
  8. march — the month
  9. net — in sport
  10. degree — temperature
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. ground — crushed
  13. march — the month
  14. march — music
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. net — for catching
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. track — to keep track
  21. stem — to come from
  22. track — a path
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. track — a song

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