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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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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 · degree · file · temple · race · capital · straw · bass

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. file — a tool
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. degree — from a university
  6. file — a line of people
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. capital — a city
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. capital — money
  11. bass — the fish
  12. bass — low music
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. root — of a word
  15. degree — temperature
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. root — of a plant
  19. race — the arms race
  20. file — a document
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. degree — an amount
  23. root — the cause
  24. race — a contest

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