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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. stem — to come from
  8. degree — temperature
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. chest — a box
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. wound — an injury
  13. chest — of your body
  14. date — the fruit
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. can — a tin
  19. chest — of your body
  20. mine — for digging
  21. can — a tin
  22. degree — an amount
  23. wound — an injury
  24. can — to be able to

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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