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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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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: ground · rock · degree · perch · stem · calf · tear · bass

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. ground — a position
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. degree — from a university
  5. stem — to come from
  6. perch — the fish
  7. degree — temperature
  8. rock — music
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. tear — to rip
  13. ground — the earth
  14. bass — the fish
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. rock — a stone
  17. degree — an amount
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. ground — crushed
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tear — from crying
  24. perch — for a bird

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