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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. cold — not warm
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. rock — a stone
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. degree — from a university
  8. degree — an amount
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. date — the fruit
  11. roll — a list
  12. root — of a plant
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. root — of a word
  15. craft — boats
  16. cell — in biology
  17. roll — a cake
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. rock — music
  20. root — the cause
  21. cell — a phone
  22. degree — temperature
  23. craft — a skill
  24. date — on the calendar

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