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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 116 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 need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. swing — in golf
  3. drill — army training
  4. drill — a practice
  5. root — the cause
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. clip — a video
  8. degree — temperature
  9. present — there
  10. degree — an amount
  11. present — the time now
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. can — to be able to
  14. root — of a plant
  15. swing — to play on
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. root — of a word
  18. degree — from a university
  19. can — a tin
  20. present — a gift
  21. clip — to cut
  22. swing — music
  23. can — a tin
  24. clip — for paper

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