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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. degree — an amount
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. club — for dancing
  5. ball — a great time
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. board — to get on
  8. board — a committee
  9. saw — the tool
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. saw — the tool
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. degree — temperature
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. club — a group
  17. stem — to come from
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. ball — a dance
  20. root — of a plant
  21. root — of a word
  22. root — the cause
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. club — for golf

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