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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 bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. pound — a weight
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. root — of a plant
  6. wound — an injury
  7. degree — an amount
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. root — the cause
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. cold — not warm
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. wound — an injury
  14. degree — from a university
  15. degree — temperature
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. cold — an illness
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. stand — to bear
  22. root — of a word
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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