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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. root — of a plant
  4. root — of a word
  5. season — of the year
  6. degree — temperature
  7. current — happening now
  8. season — in sport
  9. root — the cause
  10. current — of water
  11. staff — a stick
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. staff — employees
  14. current — electric
  15. bear — the animal
  16. shower — to wash
  17. mine — for digging
  18. staff — employees
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. degree — an amount
  21. shower — rain
  22. degree — from a university
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. bear — the animal

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