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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. stem — to come from
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. file — a document
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. degree — temperature
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. degree — an amount
  10. bore — to tire
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. chair — a leader
  16. file — a line of people
  17. degree — from a university
  18. firm — steady
  19. saw — the tool
  20. file — a tool
  21. firm — decided
  22. firm — a company
  23. bore — to drill
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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