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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 120 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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. ground — a position
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. bass — the fish
  5. firm — steady
  6. firm — decided
  7. squash — to crush
  8. degree — an amount
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. stem — to come from
  11. bass — low music
  12. squash — the sport
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. ground — crushed
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. pass — a permit
  19. degree — from a university
  20. firm — a company
  21. kick — in football
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. ground — the earth
  24. pass — to spend time

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