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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. root — the cause
  3. capital — money
  4. cell — a phone
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. cap — a lid
  8. cap — of ice
  9. pop — to visit
  10. cell — in biology
  11. root — of a word
  12. degree — temperature
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. rash — a series
  16. rash — hasty
  17. root — of a plant
  18. capital — a city
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. cap — a hat
  22. pop — soda
  23. degree — from a university
  24. degree — an amount

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