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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. net — in sport
  4. degree — from a university
  5. degree — temperature
  6. cap — a lid
  7. fall — the season
  8. net — after costs
  9. drill — a practice
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. net — for catching
  13. cap — of ice
  14. face — to point toward
  15. degree — an amount
  16. cap — a hat
  17. drill — army training
  18. fall — to drop
  19. fall — to drop
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. drill — the tool
  23. face — to confront
  24. face — part of the head

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