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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: leaves · chest · degree · stem · hand · mark

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. chest — of your body
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. degree — an amount
  7. hand — help
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. hand — in cards
  11. mark — a grade
  12. stem — to come from
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. chest — of your body
  15. degree — from a university
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. chest — a box
  18. mark — a trace

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