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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. rule — a law
  3. degree — an amount
  4. lean — thin
  5. lean — to bend
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. pitch — completely
  8. root — of a word
  9. root — of a plant
  10. degree — from a university
  11. kid — child
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. root — the cause
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. wake — a trail
  21. game — wild animals
  22. rule — government
  23. kid — to tease
  24. game — a match

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