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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. lean — to bend
  5. degree — an amount
  6. degree — from a university
  7. rule — a law
  8. degree — temperature
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. rule — government
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. band — a music group
  13. dip — to sink
  14. root — of a plant
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. band — a ring
  19. lean — thin
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. root — the cause
  24. rule — to rule out

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