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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  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. cold — not warm
  2. lean — to bend
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. root — of a word
  6. root — the cause
  7. cold — an illness
  8. cue — for pool
  9. bore — to tire
  10. degree — an amount
  11. degree — temperature
  12. band — a music group
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. craft — a skill
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. craft — boats
  17. cue — a signal
  18. lean — thin
  19. band — a ring
  20. degree — from a university
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. cue — a hint
  23. bore — to drill
  24. root — of a plant

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