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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: band · last · stem · key · content · degree · patient · firm

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. firm — decided
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. last — finally
  7. degree — an amount
  8. key — for a lock
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. firm — a company
  11. content — the amount
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. last — final
  15. stem — to come from
  16. firm — steady
  17. degree — from a university
  18. key — in music
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. degree — temperature
  21. last — to go on
  22. key — the most important part
  23. band — a music group
  24. content — happy

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