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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. degree — from a university
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. degree — an amount
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fall — the season
  8. rash — a series
  9. root — of a word
  10. band — a music group
  11. band — a ring
  12. rash — hasty
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. root — of a plant
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. degree — temperature
  17. fall — to drop
  18. root — the cause

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