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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. row — a line
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. saw — the tool
  6. game — wild animals
  7. row — to paddle
  8. saw — the tool
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. degree — from a university
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. stem — to come from
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. game — a match
  22. degree — temperature
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. degree — an amount

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