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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. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. drill — army training
  4. degree — from a university
  5. club — for dancing
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. club — a group
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. drill — the tool
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. plane — a tool
  12. drill — a practice
  13. root — the cause
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. sharp — clever
  16. degree — an amount
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. root — of a word
  21. club — for golf
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. degree — temperature

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