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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. fine — high quality
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. root — the cause
  6. stand — to bear
  7. deal — to handle
  8. degree — temperature
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. root — of a word
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — moving air
  13. root — of a plant
  14. last — finally
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. fine — all right
  18. last — final
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. last — to go on
  23. degree — from a university
  24. stand — on your feet

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