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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. craft — a skill
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. degree — temperature
  6. game — wild animals
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. craft — boats
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. pitch — completely
  11. stem — to come from
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. game — a match
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. degree — an amount
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. band — a music group
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. band — a ring
  24. craft — a handicraft

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