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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. pit — a hole
  4. present — a gift
  5. rash — hasty
  6. track — a song
  7. degree — from a university
  8. stem — to come from
  9. track — a path
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. mark — a trace
  12. present — there
  13. rash — a series
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. shower — to wash
  17. degree — temperature
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. mark — a grade
  20. pit — in a race
  21. present — the time now
  22. track — to keep track
  23. shower — rain
  24. stem — a stem cell

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