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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 · wound · degree · pitcher · stem · rock · leaves · sharp

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. wound — an injury
  3. degree — temperature
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. rock — a stone
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. stem — to come from
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. rock — music
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. degree — from a university
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. sharp — clever
  22. degree — an amount
  23. wound — an injury
  24. mine — for digging

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