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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: mouse · ball · rush · stem · lie · degree · can · clip

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. ball — a great time
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. rush — hurry
  5. degree — temperature
  6. clip — a video
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. ball — a dance
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. clip — to cut
  12. can — a tin
  13. clip — for paper
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. degree — an amount
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. degree — from a university
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. can — a tin
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. lie — to recline
  24. can — to be able to

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