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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. season — of the year
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. present — there
  5. race — the arms race
  6. season — in sport
  7. stem — to come from
  8. present — a gift
  9. game — a match
  10. race — humankind
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. race — a contest
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. lie — to recline
  16. present — the time now
  17. degree — temperature
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. degree — from a university
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. degree — an amount
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. stand — to bear

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