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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 120 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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. degree — temperature
  3. chair — a leader
  4. root — the cause
  5. root — of a word
  6. ground — the earth
  7. ground — crushed
  8. ground — a position
  9. degree — from a university
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. ball — a great time
  14. capital — a city
  15. current — of water
  16. current — happening now
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. ball — a dance
  19. capital — money
  20. current — electric
  21. root — of a plant
  22. lie — to recline
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. degree — an amount

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