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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. pass — a permit
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. root — the cause
  6. race — humankind
  7. root — of a word
  8. rush — hurry
  9. ground — the earth
  10. squash — the sport
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. race — a contest
  14. degree — an amount
  15. ground — a position
  16. degree — temperature
  17. race — the arms race
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. degree — from a university
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. squash — to crush
  24. root — of a plant

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