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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. staff — a stick
  3. clip — for paper
  4. mate — a partner
  5. shower — to wash
  6. degree — temperature
  7. degree — from a university
  8. club — for golf
  9. degree — an amount
  10. staff — employees
  11. root — of a plant
  12. club — a group
  13. mate — to breed
  14. charge — in control
  15. clip — to cut
  16. mate — a friend
  17. club — for dancing
  18. staff — employees
  19. charge — electricity
  20. root — the cause
  21. clip — a video
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. charge — a price
  24. root — of a word

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