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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 120 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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. degree — temperature
  3. bear — the animal
  4. root — of a word
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. shower — rain
  8. game — a match
  9. root — the cause
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. mate — a partner
  13. shower — to wash
  14. mate — to breed
  15. root — of a plant
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. degree — from a university
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. bear — the animal
  21. game — wild animals
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. mate — a friend

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