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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 124 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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. root — of a word
  3. band — a music group
  4. drill — a practice
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. snap — to click
  7. degree — temperature
  8. root — of a plant
  9. root — the cause
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. degree — an amount
  13. hand — in cards
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. drill — army training
  16. degree — from a university
  17. hand — help
  18. club — for dancing
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. drill — the tool
  21. club — a group
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. club — for golf

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