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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. degree — temperature
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. degree — from a university
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. net — in sport
  8. net — for catching
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. net — after costs
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. ground — the earth
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. bark — to shout
  16. ground — crushed
  17. pass — a permit
  18. mine — for digging
  19. ground — a position
  20. cap — a hat
  21. degree — an amount
  22. cap — of ice
  23. stem — to come from
  24. mine — belonging to me

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