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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. ball — a dance
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. pass — a permit
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. degree — an amount
  8. last — to go on
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. degree — from a university
  11. capital — money
  12. spring — a coil
  13. last — final
  14. spring — the season
  15. last — finally
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. stem — to come from
  19. spring — of water
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. ball — a great time
  22. degree — temperature
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. capital — a city

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