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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. land — a country
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. cell — in biology
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. cell — a phone
  13. stem — to come from
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. degree — temperature
  16. land — to come down
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. land — ground
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. vault — a safe
  22. degree — an amount
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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