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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  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. march — the month
  2. stem — to come from
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. degree — an amount
  5. net — for catching
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. firm — decided
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. net — in sport
  13. march — the month
  14. degree — temperature
  15. ground — crushed
  16. ground — a position
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. firm — steady
  19. firm — a company
  20. net — after costs
  21. ground — the earth
  22. march — music
  23. rush — hurry
  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