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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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. face — to point toward
  3. degree — from a university
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. court — of a king
  6. root — the cause
  7. land — a country
  8. face — part of the head
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. spell — a short time
  11. spell — magic
  12. degree — an amount
  13. degree — temperature
  14. spell — letters
  15. root — of a plant
  16. land — to come down
  17. land — ground
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. court — of law
  20. court — for sport
  21. deal — to handle
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. face — to confront
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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