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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. degree — temperature
  3. degree — an amount
  4. rest — a break
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. key — the most important part
  7. key — in music
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. stem — to come from
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. key — for a lock
  12. wake — a trail
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. wound — an injury
  15. degree — from a university
  16. plane — a tool
  17. spring — the season
  18. spring — a coil
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. rest — what's left
  22. rest — what's left
  23. spring — of water
  24. wound — an injury

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