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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. root — the cause
  3. sharp — clever
  4. degree — temperature
  5. field — for sport
  6. degree — from a university
  7. present — a gift
  8. file — a document
  9. field — farmland
  10. present — the time now
  11. vault — a safe
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. file — a tool
  15. present — there
  16. degree — an amount
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. pound — a weight
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. root — of a plant
  21. root — of a word
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. field — a subject

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