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

Word bank: court · bore · kick · mate · root · bulb · degree · race

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. root — of a plant
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. mate — to breed
  5. mate — a partner
  6. degree — an amount
  7. race — the arms race
  8. kick — in football
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. race — a contest
  11. mate — a friend
  12. court — for sport
  13. court — of a king
  14. bulb — for light
  15. degree — temperature
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. court — of law
  18. degree — from a university
  19. root — of a word
  20. bore — to drill
  21. bulb — for light
  22. root — the cause
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. bore — to tire

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