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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. season — in sport
  3. chest — a box
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. mark — a grade
  8. season — of the year
  9. degree — temperature
  10. stem — to come from
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. degree — from a university
  13. wind — moving air
  14. degree — an amount
  15. wind — moving air
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. mark — a trace
  18. chest — of your body
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. chest — of your body
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. pound — a weight

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