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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. land — ground
  3. pit — in a race
  4. cap — a hat
  5. row — a line
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. charge — electricity
  8. root — of a word
  9. degree — from a university
  10. land — a country
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. charge — in control
  13. charge — a price
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. degree — an amount
  17. land — to come down
  18. root — of a plant
  19. cap — of ice
  20. cap — a lid
  21. wind — moving air
  22. degree — temperature
  23. root — the cause
  24. row — to paddle

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