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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. mate — a partner
  3. craft — a skill
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. fall — to drop
  6. lean — thin
  7. mate — to breed
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. degree — an amount
  11. fall — the season
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. fall — to drop
  14. branch — a division
  15. degree — from a university
  16. tube — a container
  17. stem — to come from
  18. lean — to bend
  19. craft — boats
  20. degree — temperature
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. tube — the underground
  24. branch — of a bank

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