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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.

Make a worksheet

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 play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. degree — temperature
  4. bass — low music
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. capital — a city
  8. root — of a plant
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. root — the cause
  12. bass — the fish
  13. snap — to click
  14. degree — an amount
  15. degree — from a university
  16. capital — money
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  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