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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. root — of a word
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. cap — a hat
  7. game — wild animals
  8. bulb — for light
  9. craft — a skill
  10. cap — a lid
  11. root — the cause
  12. root — of a plant
  13. degree — an amount
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. stock — shares
  16. game — a match
  17. mine — for digging
  18. degree — temperature
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. craft — boats
  21. cap — of ice
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. stock — goods
  24. degree — from a university

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