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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. hand — in cards
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. root — of a plant
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. spring — a coil
  8. mate — to breed
  9. mate — a partner
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. degree — temperature
  12. hand — help
  13. degree — from a university
  14. degree — an amount
  15. mate — a friend
  16. spring — of water
  17. spring — the season
  18. game — wild animals
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. root — of a word
  24. root — the cause

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