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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: scale · club · stem · spell · degree · tear

  1. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. degree — from a university
  3. tear — from crying
  4. spell — letters
  5. tear — to rip
  6. spell — a short time
  7. tear — from crying
  8. club — a group
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. spell — magic
  12. club — for dancing
  13. stem — to come from
  14. degree — an amount
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. degree — temperature
  17. scale — in music
  18. club — for golf

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