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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. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. squash — to crush
  3. degree — an amount
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. face — part of the head
  6. key — in music
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. race — the arms race
  9. stem — to come from
  10. race — humankind
  11. key — the most important part
  12. race — a contest
  13. face — to confront
  14. degree — temperature
  15. content — the amount
  16. degree — from a university
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. face — to point toward
  20. squash — the sport
  21. content — happy
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. key — for a lock
  24. content — videos and posts

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