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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. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. race — the arms race
  3. stock — shares
  4. root — the cause
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. stock — goods
  7. ball — a great time
  8. ball — a dance
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. root — of a word
  12. root — of a plant
  13. degree — temperature
  14. race — humankind
  15. game — wild animals
  16. game — a match
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. degree — from a university
  20. degree — an amount
  21. race — a contest
  22. shower — rain
  23. shower — to wash
  24. wave — with your hand

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