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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: date · root · content · shower · bound · mug · degree · last

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. bound — tied together
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. root — the cause
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. mug — a face
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. last — final
  9. root — of a word
  10. content — happy
  11. bound — obliged
  12. last — finally
  13. root — of a plant
  14. shower — rain
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. last — to go on
  17. mug — to rob
  18. content — the amount
  19. degree — an amount
  20. degree — from a university
  21. mug — a cup
  22. date — the fruit
  23. bound — certain
  24. degree — temperature

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