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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. fine — high quality
  4. board — a committee
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. hand — help
  8. stem — to come from
  9. fine — all right
  10. degree — an amount
  11. present — a gift
  12. degree — temperature
  13. date — the fruit
  14. present — the time now
  15. board — to get on
  16. present — there
  17. hand — in cards
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. degree — from a university
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. date — on the calendar

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