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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 information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. pit — a hole
  3. degree — an amount
  4. degree — temperature
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. file — a tool
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. last — finally
  9. pit — in a race
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. last — to go on
  13. degree — from a university
  14. rock — music
  15. stem — to come from
  16. row — a line
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. rock — a stone
  20. file — a line of people
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. row — to paddle
  24. last — final

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