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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 120 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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. degree — temperature
  3. wake — a trail
  4. root — of a word
  5. degree — from a university
  6. game — a match
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. root — the cause
  9. press — newspapers
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. game — wild animals
  12. wind — moving air
  13. fine — high quality
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. root — of a plant
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. press — to push
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. fine — all right
  22. press — a publisher
  23. degree — an amount
  24. wind — moving air

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