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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. face — part of the head
  3. degree — from a university
  4. face — to point toward
  5. bat — the animal
  6. degree — an amount
  7. press — newspapers
  8. net — for catching
  9. press — a publisher
  10. shower — rain
  11. net — in sport
  12. degree — temperature
  13. root — of a plant
  14. face — to confront
  15. press — to push
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. root — the cause
  18. net — after costs
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. shower — to wash
  23. root — of a word
  24. mine — for digging

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