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

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. root — the cause
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. track — to keep track
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. track — a song
  8. track — a path
  9. degree — from a university
  10. stem — to come from
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. degree — temperature
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. vault — a safe
  16. root — of a plant
  17. pound — a weight
  18. root — of a word

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