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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. drill — a practice
  3. race — a contest
  4. snap — to click
  5. drill — army training
  6. root — the cause
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. root — of a word
  9. drill — the tool
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. scale — in music
  14. degree — temperature
  15. race — humankind
  16. root — of a plant
  17. degree — an amount
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. scale — size or range
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. race — the arms race
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. fan — a supporter

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