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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. net — for catching
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. root — the cause
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. clip — to cut
  7. roll — a list
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. net — in sport
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. root — of a word
  12. net — after costs
  13. drill — a practice
  14. roll — a cake
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. degree — from a university
  18. clip — for paper
  19. drill — the tool
  20. root — of a plant
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. degree — an amount
  23. clip — a video
  24. drill — army training

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