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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. track — a song
  3. charge — a price
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. root — of a word
  7. net — in sport
  8. bank — for money
  9. charge — electricity
  10. track — a path
  11. degree — temperature
  12. net — for catching
  13. degree — from a university
  14. charge — in control
  15. root — of a plant
  16. root — the cause
  17. bank — of a river
  18. degree — an amount
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. bank — for money
  21. game — wild animals
  22. game — a match
  23. track — to keep track
  24. net — after costs

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