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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. cell — a phone
  3. spring — of water
  4. lean — thin
  5. root — the cause
  6. degree — an amount
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. root — of a word
  9. cell — in biology
  10. can — a tin
  11. can — a tin
  12. lean — to bend
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. degree — temperature
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. spring — the season
  17. root — of a plant
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. spring — a coil
  21. snap — to click
  22. can — to be able to
  23. bat — the animal
  24. lean — to rest against

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