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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. swing — to play on
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. swing — music
  6. land — ground
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. root — of a word
  10. degree — temperature
  11. root — of a plant
  12. swing — in golf
  13. land — a country
  14. kick — in football
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. root — the cause
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. degree — from a university
  19. cap — a hat
  20. cap — of ice
  21. cap — a lid
  22. land — to come down
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. bay — a horse colour

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