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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. spell — a short time
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. track — a path
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. degree — temperature
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. spell — letters
  10. spell — magic
  11. chip — to eat
  12. bat — the animal
  13. rock — a stone
  14. track — to keep track
  15. chip — for betting
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. root — the cause
  18. date — the fruit
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. track — a song
  21. rock — music
  22. degree — an amount
  23. root — of a word
  24. root — of a plant

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