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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. pitch — completely
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. degree — an amount
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. roll — a cake
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. degree — temperature
  12. board — to get on
  13. current — of water
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. stem — to come from
  16. wax — to grow
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. roll — a list
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. board — a committee
  22. current — electric
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. current — happening now

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