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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: tube · mine · stem · track · degree · date · temple · content

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. content — happy
  4. date — the fruit
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. content — the amount
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. track — a path
  10. degree — temperature
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. degree — an amount
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. stem — to come from
  15. track — a song
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. mine — for digging
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. tube — the underground
  20. track — to keep track
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. tube — a container
  24. mine — an explosive

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