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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 am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. present — the time now
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. bear — the animal
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. last — final
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. bear — the animal
  10. land — a country
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. last — to go on
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. present — there
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. land — to come down
  18. stem — to come from
  19. last — finally
  20. degree — from a university
  21. degree — an amount
  22. land — ground
  23. degree — temperature
  24. present — a gift

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