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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: hand · can · degree · stem · last · key · toast · leaves

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. degree — an amount
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. key — the most important part
  5. last — to go on
  6. last — final
  7. key — in music
  8. toast — bread
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. last — finally
  13. degree — temperature
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. can — a tin
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. degree — from a university
  18. key — for a lock
  19. can — a tin
  20. hand — in cards
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. stem — to come from
  24. can — to be able to

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