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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 124 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. The water is too ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. press — newspapers
  6. dip — to sink
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. degree — from a university
  10. press — a publisher
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. key — the most important part
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. degree — an amount
  16. press — to push
  17. rock — a stone
  18. key — in music
  19. cold — an illness
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. key — for a lock
  22. stem — to come from
  23. rock — music
  24. degree — temperature

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