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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. stem — to come from
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. object — to protest
  5. mug — to rob
  6. land — to come down
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. deal — to handle
  9. object — an aim
  10. land — ground
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. mug — a face
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. object — a thing
  18. degree — an amount
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. degree — from a university
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. mug — a cup
  23. land — a country
  24. deal — a big deal

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