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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 116 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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. object — a thing
  5. degree — temperature
  6. mark — a trace
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. degree — from a university
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. bear — the animal
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. ground — a position
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. ground — crushed
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. ground — the earth
  19. object — to protest
  20. object — an aim
  21. mark — a grade
  22. degree — an amount
  23. bear — the animal
  24. stem — of a plant

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