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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. staff — employees
  3. bank — for money
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. degree — from a university
  6. bank — of a river
  7. file — a tool
  8. content — happy
  9. content — the amount
  10. degree — temperature
  11. degree — an amount
  12. file — a line of people
  13. stand — to bear
  14. root — of a plant
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. root — of a word
  17. file — a document
  18. root — the cause
  19. staff — employees
  20. staff — a stick
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. bank — for money
  24. fine — all right

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