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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. clip — for paper
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. root — the cause
  6. degree — temperature
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. rush — hurry
  9. root — of a word
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. clip — to cut
  18. pound — a weight
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. root — of a plant
  21. degree — from a university
  22. degree — an amount
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. clip — a video

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