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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. root — of a word
  3. degree — from a university
  4. pound — a weight
  5. season — of the year
  6. degree — temperature
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. court — of a king
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. season — in sport
  11. court — for sport
  12. game — wild animals
  13. root — the cause
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. court — of law
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. game — a match
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. degree — an amount
  23. root — of a plant
  24. stem — to come from

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