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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. degree — temperature
  3. can — a tin
  4. degree — from a university
  5. pass — a permit
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. drill — the tool
  8. hand — in cards
  9. season — in sport
  10. can — a tin
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. drill — a practice
  13. hand — help
  14. degree — an amount
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. drill — army training
  19. stem — to come from
  20. season — of the year
  21. wind — moving air
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. can — to be able to

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