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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: ground · degree · ruler · stem · chest · march · cabinet · wind

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — moving air
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. march — the month
  6. march — music
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. chest — of your body
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. chest — of your body
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. stem — to come from
  15. ground — crushed
  16. chest — a box
  17. degree — temperature
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. ground — the earth
  21. march — the month
  22. ground — a position
  23. degree — from a university
  24. degree — an amount

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