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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. bore — to tire
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. degree — an amount
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. stem — to come from
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. tear — from crying
  9. wake — a trail
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. bore — to drill
  12. tear — to rip
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. snap — to click
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. degree — temperature
  21. degree — from a university
  22. plane — a tool
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. tear — from crying

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