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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. wound — an injury
  3. root — the cause
  4. bulb — for light
  5. chair — a leader
  6. degree — an amount
  7. content — the amount
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. cue — a hint
  10. wound — an injury
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. degree — from a university
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. content — happy
  15. root — of a plant
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. degree — temperature
  18. cue — for pool
  19. bulb — for light
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. root — of a word
  22. cue — a signal
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. content — videos and posts

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