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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: stem · temple · can · wind · perch · board · cell · degree

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. degree — from a university
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — a phone
  8. board — to get on
  9. perch — the fish
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — moving air
  12. degree — temperature
  13. can — a tin
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. degree — an amount
  16. can — to be able to
  17. cell — in biology
  18. can — a tin
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. board — a committee

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