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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. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. land — a country
  3. degree — an amount
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. rule — a law
  6. root — the cause
  7. swing — music
  8. root — of a word
  9. swing — to play on
  10. degree — from a university
  11. last — final
  12. rock — music
  13. swing — in golf
  14. rock — a stone
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. land — ground
  17. last — finally
  18. last — to go on
  19. degree — temperature
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. land — to come down
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. rule — government
  24. coach — a trainer

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