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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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. degree — temperature
  3. key — the most important part
  4. hand — in cards
  5. key — in music
  6. tube — a container
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. stem — to come from
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. date — the fruit
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. shower — rain
  14. root — of a word
  15. root — of a plant
  16. degree — an amount
  17. root — the cause
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. tube — the underground
  20. key — for a lock
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. degree — from a university
  23. shower — to wash
  24. hand — help

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