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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 124 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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. object — an aim
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. toast — bread
  8. object — to protest
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. degree — temperature
  11. degree — an amount
  12. cap — a lid
  13. wound — an injury
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. pop — to visit
  16. degree — from a university
  17. cap — a hat
  18. cap — of ice
  19. pop — soda
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. wound — an injury
  22. object — a thing
  23. stem — to come from
  24. stem — of a plant

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