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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. wind — moving air
  6. drill — the tool
  7. drill — a practice
  8. bat — the animal
  9. degree — from a university
  10. stem — to come from
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. stand — to bear
  21. drill — army training
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. degree — temperature
  24. stem — of a plant

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