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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. root — of a word
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. sharp — clever
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. ball — a dance
  12. rash — hasty
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. root — of a plant
  16. ball — a great time
  17. degree — from a university
  18. degree — an amount
  19. rash — a series
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. degree — temperature
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. root — the cause
  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