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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. cold — not warm
  5. degree — an amount
  6. land — a country
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. degree — from a university
  10. stem — to come from
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. wake — a trail
  14. fine — high quality
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. spell — magic
  17. land — to come down
  18. cold — an illness
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. spell — a short time
  21. land — ground
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. spell — letters
  24. fine — all right

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