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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. degree — from a university
  3. root — the cause
  4. degree — temperature
  5. club — for golf
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. rock — a stone
  8. root — of a plant
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. root — of a word
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. march — music
  14. game — a match
  15. march — the month
  16. game — wild animals
  17. toast — bread
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. march — the month
  20. club — a group
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. degree — an amount
  24. club — for dancing

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