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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 120 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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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: march · rest · press · stem · degree · hide · bear · file

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. march — the month
  3. degree — an amount
  4. degree — from a university
  5. press — to push
  6. bear — the animal
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. file — a line of people
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. rest — what's left
  11. stem — to come from
  12. file — a tool
  13. march — the month
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. march — music
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. degree — temperature
  18. rest — what's left
  19. bear — the animal
  20. press — newspapers
  21. file — a document
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. rest — a break
  24. press — a publisher

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