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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. pop — to visit
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. last — to go on
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. last — final
  9. root — the cause
  10. stand — to bear
  11. root — of a word
  12. degree — an amount
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. root — of a plant
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. cell — in biology
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. degree — temperature
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. fork — in a road
  21. cell — a phone
  22. pop — music
  23. pop — soda
  24. degree — from a university

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