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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. That was a fun ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. game — a match
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. rush — hurry
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. content — happy
  10. stock — shares
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. stock — goods
  13. degree — temperature
  14. degree — from a university
  15. root — the cause
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. game — wild animals
  18. content — the amount
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. degree — an amount
  22. root — of a plant
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. nail — on a finger

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