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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 common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. root — of a word
  3. degree — temperature
  4. root — the cause
  5. net — in sport
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. mate — to breed
  9. root — of a plant
  10. last — finally
  11. sharp — clever
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. last — to go on
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. last — final
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. mate — a friend
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. net — after costs
  20. degree — from a university
  21. degree — an amount
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. mate — a partner
  24. net — for catching

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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