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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. degree — temperature
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. mate — a partner
  5. root — of a plant
  6. current — happening now
  7. clip — for paper
  8. wake — a trail
  9. current — of water
  10. degree — from a university
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. current — electric
  13. mate — a friend
  14. root — the cause
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. mate — to breed
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. clip — to cut
  20. degree — an amount
  21. root — of a word
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. clip — a video

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