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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 took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. degree — an amount
  3. degree — temperature
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. rest — what's left
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. rest — a break
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. rest — what's left
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. wind — moving air
  15. season — in sport
  16. wind — moving air
  17. stem — to come from
  18. degree — from a university
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. season — of the year
  21. game — a match
  22. shower — to wash
  23. branch — a division
  24. game — wild animals

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