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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. court — for sport
  3. root — the cause
  4. mug — a cup
  5. chest — a box
  6. degree — from a university
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. degree — an amount
  9. mug — a face
  10. content — the amount
  11. root — of a plant
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. content — happy
  14. pitch — completely
  15. court — of law
  16. chest — of your body
  17. mug — to rob
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. chest — of your body
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. degree — temperature
  22. court — of a king
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. nail — for a hammer

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