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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. degree — temperature
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. tube — the underground
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. bass — low music
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. snap — to click
  14. tube — a container
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. bass — the fish
  17. stem — to come from
  18. degree — from a university
  19. fine — all right
  20. degree — an amount
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. fine — high quality
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. bat — the animal

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