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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. ground — a position
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. stem — to come from
  5. firm — steady
  6. content — the amount
  7. firm — a company
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. ground — crushed
  10. rush — hurry
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. ground — the earth
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. prune — to trim
  18. content — happy
  19. degree — from a university
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. degree — temperature
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. firm — decided
  24. sharp — clever

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