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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. sharp — clever
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. degree — temperature
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. fall — to drop
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. scale — size or range
  12. degree — from a university
  13. degree — an amount
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. scale — in music
  16. fall — the season
  17. fall — to drop
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. fine — high quality
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. stem — to come from

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