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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. board — to get on
  3. drill — a practice
  4. craft — boats
  5. file — a line of people
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. mine — for digging
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. root — the cause
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. craft — a skill
  12. degree — an amount
  13. degree — temperature
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. degree — from a university
  16. file — a tool
  17. drill — army training
  18. board — a committee
  19. file — a document
  20. drill — the tool
  21. root — of a plant
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. band — a music group
  24. band — a ring

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