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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. squash — to crush
  6. degree — temperature
  7. degree — from a university
  8. fine — all right
  9. root — of a word
  10. fine — high quality
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. hand — in cards
  15. squash — the sport
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. hand — help
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. root — of a plant
  22. pound — a weight
  23. root — the cause
  24. degree — an amount

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