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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. root — of a word
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. wind — moving air
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. wind — moving air
  7. field — for sport
  8. field — farmland
  9. mate — a friend
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. root — of a plant
  12. root — the cause
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. mate — a partner
  15. degree — from a university
  16. field — a subject
  17. degree — an amount
  18. degree — temperature
  19. sharp — clever
  20. mate — to breed
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. pit — in a race
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. pit — a hole

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