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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. capital — money
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. root — of a word
  5. degree — an amount
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. degree — from a university
  10. shower — to wash
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. capital — a city
  15. shower — rain
  16. key — in music
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. degree — temperature
  20. root — the cause
  21. key — the most important part
  22. root — of a plant
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. snap — to click

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