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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. degree — an amount
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. wake — a trail
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. field — for sport
  8. firm — a company
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. field — a subject
  13. degree — temperature
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. dip — to sink
  17. field — farmland
  18. firm — decided
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. stem — to come from
  23. degree — from a university
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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