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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · hide · chair · tear · degree · cabinet · game · sharp

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. stem — to come from
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. tear — from crying
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. chair — a leader
  7. tear — to rip
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. degree — temperature
  10. degree — an amount
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. game — wild animals
  16. tear — from crying
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. sharp — clever
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. degree — from a university
  24. cabinet — ministers

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