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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: row · nail · leaves · stem · rule · club · degree · content

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. rule — a law
  5. stem — to come from
  6. content — happy
  7. degree — from a university
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. row — a line
  12. rule — government
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. content — the amount
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. club — for dancing
  18. row — to paddle
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. degree — temperature
  21. degree — an amount
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. club — for golf
  24. nail — for a hammer

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