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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 124 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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. present — a gift
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. rash — hasty
  8. kick — in football
  9. present — the time now
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. degree — from a university
  14. degree — temperature
  15. root — of a plant
  16. rash — a series
  17. root — the cause
  18. wake — a trail
  19. present — there
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. root — of a word
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. cabinet — ministers

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