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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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. clip — to cut
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. root — of a plant
  5. degree — from a university
  6. net — after costs
  7. degree — an amount
  8. clip — for paper
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. root — of a word
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. net — for catching
  13. pop — soda
  14. clip — a video
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. net — in sport
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. dip — to sink
  19. pop — to visit
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. pop — music
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. degree — temperature
  24. root — the cause

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