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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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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: squash · pitcher · rush · root · degree · club · deal · cold

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. club — for dancing
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. squash — to crush
  5. root — the cause
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. club — for golf
  8. squash — the sport
  9. degree — temperature
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. club — a group
  14. degree — an amount
  15. deal — to handle
  16. root — of a word
  17. cold — not warm
  18. cold — an illness
  19. root — of a plant
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. rush — hurry
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. rush — to hurry

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