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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. hand — in cards
  3. hand — help
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. court — for sport
  6. degree — an amount
  7. degree — from a university
  8. last — to go on
  9. root — of a word
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. degree — temperature
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. court — of a king
  15. last — final
  16. court — of law
  17. root — of a plant
  18. last — finally

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