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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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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: drill · stem · chair · content · degree · key

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. key — in music
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. stem — to come from
  5. content — happy
  6. drill — army training
  7. drill — the tool
  8. drill — a practice
  9. chair — a leader
  10. key — the most important part
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. content — the amount
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. degree — temperature
  15. key — for a lock
  16. degree — an amount
  17. degree — from a university
  18. content — videos and posts

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