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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. season — of the year
  3. degree — temperature
  4. kid — to tease
  5. drill — a practice
  6. cue — a signal
  7. degree — from a university
  8. shower — to wash
  9. season — in sport
  10. cue — a hint
  11. cue — for pool
  12. root — of a plant
  13. drill — the tool
  14. degree — an amount
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. kid — child
  17. club — for golf
  18. club — for dancing
  19. root — the cause
  20. drill — army training
  21. club — a group
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. shower — rain
  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