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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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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: land · ground · cell · lean · degree · sharp · stem · tube

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. cell — a phone
  3. tube — a container
  4. ground — crushed
  5. cell — in biology
  6. lean — thin
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. lean — to bend
  9. degree — from a university
  10. stem — to come from
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. ground — a position
  13. degree — an amount
  14. land — ground
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. tube — the underground
  17. sharp — clever
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. ground — the earth
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. land — to come down
  23. land — a country
  24. lean — to rest against

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