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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 120 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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Word bank
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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. key — in music
  5. degree — from a university
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. root — the cause
  9. tear — from crying
  10. degree — temperature
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. stem — to come from
  15. degree — an amount
  16. root — of a word
  17. rule — a law
  18. perch — the fish
  19. key — for a lock
  20. tear — to rip
  21. root — of a plant
  22. rule — government
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. tear — from crying

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