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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. cap — a hat
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. clip — to cut
  5. court — for sport
  6. court — of law
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. clip — a video
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. court — of a king
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. cap — of ice
  13. degree — temperature
  14. rash — hasty
  15. rash — a series
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. stem — to come from
  20. clip — for paper
  21. degree — an amount
  22. cap — a lid
  23. degree — from a university
  24. stem — a stem cell

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