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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. pitch — completely
  3. root — of a plant
  4. chest — of your body
  5. file — a tool
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. degree — from a university
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. file — a document
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. degree — an amount
  13. chest — of your body
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. root — of a word
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. suit — to fit
  19. root — the cause
  20. degree — temperature
  21. file — a line of people
  22. suit — clothes
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. chest — a box

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