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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: bat · stem · hide · leaves · sharp · degree · foot · bark

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. degree — an amount
  4. stem — to come from
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. sharp — clever
  7. bark — to shout
  8. degree — from a university
  9. foot — a measure
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — the animal
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. degree — temperature
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. foot — the bottom

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