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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. present — a gift
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. degree — from a university
  7. degree — temperature
  8. cold — not warm
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. present — there
  11. cold — an illness
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. stem — to come from
  14. present — the time now
  15. season — of the year
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. stock — shares
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. degree — an amount
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. season — in sport
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. stock — goods
  24. mouse — the animal

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