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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. rule — government
  4. cue — for pool
  5. last — finally
  6. face — to confront
  7. degree — temperature
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. content — happy
  10. last — to go on
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. face — part of the head
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. root — the cause
  15. face — to point toward
  16. cue — a signal
  17. last — final
  18. content — the amount
  19. root — of a plant
  20. rule — a law
  21. root — of a word
  22. degree — an amount
  23. cue — a hint
  24. mouse — for a computer

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