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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. rush — hurry
  3. stem — to come from
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. degree — an amount
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. fine — all right
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. shower — to wash
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. content — the amount
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. content — happy
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. fine — high quality
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. bore — to tire
  21. shower — rain
  22. degree — temperature
  23. bore — to drill
  24. degree — from a university

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