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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: stem · degree · pitcher · fine · drill · straw · wake · vault

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. degree — temperature
  4. vault — a safe
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. drill — a practice
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. fine — high quality
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. degree — from a university
  13. fine — all right
  14. wake — a trail
  15. drill — the tool
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. stem — to come from
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. drill — army training
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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