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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. stem — to come from
  5. object — an aim
  6. degree — temperature
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. degree — from a university
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. spring — a coil
  12. pass — a permit
  13. prune — to trim
  14. degree — an amount
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. object — a thing
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. spring — the season
  20. dip — to sink
  21. prune — to trim
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. spring — of water
  24. object — to protest

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