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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. root — of a word
  3. net — after costs
  4. last — final
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. degree — temperature
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. present — there
  9. last — finally
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. root — of a plant
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. squash — the sport
  15. net — in sport
  16. degree — an amount
  17. squash — to crush
  18. degree — from a university
  19. present — the time now
  20. present — a gift
  21. row — to paddle
  22. last — to go on
  23. row — a line
  24. root — the cause

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