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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. degree — an amount
  3. scale — size or range
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. scale — in music
  6. bore — to tire
  7. wound — an injury
  8. degree — temperature
  9. snap — to click
  10. root — of a plant
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. bear — the animal
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. wound — an injury
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. degree — from a university
  19. bore — to drill
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. root — the cause
  22. bear — the animal
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. root — of a word

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