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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. net — for catching
  3. mate — to breed
  4. court — of law
  5. mate — a partner
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. march — the month
  8. rest — what's left
  9. net — after costs
  10. net — in sport
  11. degree — an amount
  12. spell — magic
  13. rest — what's left
  14. stem — to come from
  15. court — for sport
  16. march — the month
  17. degree — from a university
  18. march — music
  19. degree — temperature
  20. spell — a short time
  21. mate — a friend
  22. spell — letters
  23. court — of a king
  24. stem — a stem cell

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