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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. degree — from a university
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. degree — an amount
  5. court — for sport
  6. rest — a break
  7. stem — to come from
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rest — what's left
  11. court — of a king
  12. wake — a trail
  13. court — of law
  14. plane — a tool
  15. degree — temperature
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. spell — letters
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. spell — magic
  22. spell — a short time
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. stem — a stem cell

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