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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. spell — letters
  3. swing — music
  4. degree — an amount
  5. row — a line
  6. spell — magic
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. stem — to come from
  9. object — to protest
  10. spell — a short time
  11. swing — in golf
  12. object — an aim
  13. plane — a tool
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. swing — to play on
  16. object — a thing
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. row — to paddle
  19. degree — from a university
  20. degree — temperature
  21. spring — a coil
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. spring — the season
  24. spring — of water

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