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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cell · cue · mate · degree · pound · root

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. 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. degree — from a university
  2. root — of a plant
  3. mate — a friend
  4. cue — a signal
  5. degree — temperature
  6. cue — a hint
  7. pound — a weight
  8. mate — a partner
  9. cell — a phone
  10. root — of a word
  11. cell — in biology
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. cue — for pool
  14. mate — to breed
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. degree — an amount
  18. 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