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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. file — a line of people
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. cell — in biology
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. board — a committee
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. degree — an amount
  13. cell — a phone
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. file — a tool
  16. degree — temperature
  17. board — to get on
  18. stem — to come from
  19. cold — an illness
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. file — a document
  22. bass — low music
  23. degree — from a university
  24. cold — not warm

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