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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: stem · pitcher · mate · degree · board · pop · rule · clip

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. degree — temperature
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. stem — to come from
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pop — soda
  7. degree — an amount
  8. clip — to cut
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. board — to get on
  12. mate — a partner
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. mate — a friend
  15. degree — from a university
  16. board — a committee
  17. rule — government
  18. clip — for paper
  19. mate — to breed
  20. rule — a law
  21. pop — music
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. pop — to visit

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