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

Word bank: root · drill · stick · march · tear · degree · bear · vault

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  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. root — of a word
  2. vault — a safe
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. bear — the animal
  6. tear — from crying
  7. degree — an amount
  8. tear — from crying
  9. root — of a plant
  10. tear — to rip
  11. degree — temperature
  12. degree — from a university
  13. march — music
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. bear — the animal
  16. drill — a practice
  17. drill — the tool
  18. march — the month
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. march — the month
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. drill — army training
  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