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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. rush — hurry
  4. root — the cause
  5. last — to go on
  6. perch — the fish
  7. face — to confront
  8. season — of the year
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. season — in sport
  11. degree — an amount
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. face — part of the head
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. face — to point toward
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. root — of a word
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. degree — temperature
  21. degree — from a university
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. last — final
  24. root — of a plant

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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