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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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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. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. 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. root — of a plant
  2. game — wild animals
  3. perch — the fish
  4. root — the cause
  5. present — a gift
  6. march — the month
  7. present — there
  8. present — the time now
  9. march — the month
  10. march — music
  11. degree — an amount
  12. degree — temperature
  13. degree — from a university
  14. game — a match
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. root — of a word
  18. 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