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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. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. degree — from a university
  3. file — a line of people
  4. root — of a word
  5. root — of a plant
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. spell — letters
  8. degree — an amount
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. spell — a short time
  13. row — to paddle
  14. root — the cause
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. row — a line
  17. vault — a safe
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. file — a document
  22. file — a tool
  23. spell — magic
  24. degree — temperature

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