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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. degree — from a university
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. swing — music
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. fine — all right
  8. stem — to come from
  9. degree — temperature
  10. season — in sport
  11. season — of the year
  12. swing — to play on
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. perch — the fish
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. swing — in golf
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. rule — government
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. degree — an amount
  21. fine — high quality
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. rule — a law

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