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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. mate — a friend
  3. net — in sport
  4. root — of a word
  5. degree — from a university
  6. root — the cause
  7. spell — a short time
  8. net — after costs
  9. net — for catching
  10. face — to confront
  11. degree — temperature
  12. spell — magic
  13. spell — letters
  14. degree — an amount
  15. rush — hurry
  16. root — of a plant
  17. row — to paddle
  18. row — a line
  19. face — to point toward
  20. mate — to breed
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. mate — a partner
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. row — a quarrel

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