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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 120 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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. saw — the tool
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. saw — the tool
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. stem — to come from
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. scale — size or range
  10. last — to go on
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. race — a contest
  14. last — final
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. scale — in music
  17. race — humankind
  18. degree — from a university
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. degree — an amount
  23. last — finally
  24. race — the arms race

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