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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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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: degree · stem · stand · jam · kid · deal · rest · content

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. content — happy
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. kid — child
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. stand — to bear
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. rest — what's left
  15. degree — from a university
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. content — the amount
  19. kid — to tease
  20. deal — to handle
  21. rest — a break
  22. stem — to come from
  23. degree — temperature
  24. rest — what's left

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