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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. degree — from a university
  4. row — a line
  5. pop — to visit
  6. spring — of water
  7. charge — electricity
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. degree — an amount
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. pop — music
  13. row — to paddle
  14. pop — soda
  15. spring — the season
  16. charge — a price
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. spring — a coil
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. current — electric
  21. charge — in control
  22. current — happening now
  23. current — of water
  24. stem — to come from

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