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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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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: deal · degree · last · ball · wind · foot · stem · fork

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. fork — in a road
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. stem — to come from
  6. wind — moving air
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. ball — a great time
  9. foot — a measure
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. degree — temperature
  13. ball — a dance
  14. last — finally
  15. deal — to handle
  16. last — final
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. wind — moving air
  22. degree — an amount
  23. degree — from a university
  24. stem — a stem cell

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