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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. rule — government
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chest — of your body
  6. degree — from a university
  7. object — an aim
  8. root — the cause
  9. rule — a law
  10. root — of a word
  11. object — to protest
  12. shower — to wash
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. root — of a plant
  15. shower — rain
  16. degree — an amount
  17. degree — temperature
  18. chest — a box

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