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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. mug — a cup
  3. cell — in biology
  4. root — of a word
  5. mug — to rob
  6. mate — a friend
  7. present — there
  8. mug — a face
  9. cell — a phone
  10. mate — to breed
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. root — the cause
  13. wake — a trail
  14. present — a gift
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. degree — an amount
  17. mate — a partner
  18. root — of a plant
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. present — the time now
  23. degree — temperature
  24. temple — a place of worship

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