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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 124 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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. degree — an amount
  3. degree — from a university
  4. race — the arms race
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. cue — a hint
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. vault — a safe
  9. stem — to come from
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. drill — army training
  12. degree — temperature
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. cue — a signal
  16. kick — in football
  17. race — humankind
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. race — a contest
  20. content — happy
  21. cue — for pool
  22. drill — the tool
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. content — the amount

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