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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 116 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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. band — a ring
  4. stem — to come from
  5. degree — from a university
  6. rest — what's left
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. bank — of a river
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. bank — for money
  12. wax — to grow
  13. band — a music group
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. degree — temperature
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. pit — a hole
  19. rest — a break
  20. pit — in a race
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. stand — to bear
  23. bank — for money
  24. rest — what's left

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