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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. bound — obliged
  3. degree — temperature
  4. bound — tied together
  5. rush — hurry
  6. degree — from a university
  7. root — of a word
  8. last — finally
  9. bound — certain
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. last — to go on
  13. race — the arms race
  14. root — of a plant
  15. content — the amount
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. dip — to sink
  18. degree — an amount
  19. race — a contest
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. root — the cause
  22. content — happy
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. race — humankind

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