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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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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: mine · stem · kick · degree · arm · press · spell · lean

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. press — a publisher
  3. degree — from a university
  4. kick — in football
  5. degree — an amount
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. spell — letters
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. mine — for digging
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. spell — a short time
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. stem — to come from
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. press — newspapers
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. lean — to bend
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. spell — magic
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. lean — thin
  24. press — to push

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