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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. wound — an injury
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pass — a permit
  7. stem — to come from
  8. degree — temperature
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. degree — from a university
  16. degree — an amount
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. wound — an injury
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. trunk — of a tree

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