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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: root · degree · bat · track · jam · key · shower · tube

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. track — a song
  3. key — for a lock
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. root — of a plant
  6. key — the most important part
  7. shower — rain
  8. track — a path
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. degree — from a university
  11. track — to keep track
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. root — of a word
  14. key — in music
  15. degree — temperature
  16. degree — an amount
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. bat — the animal
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. tube — a container
  21. tube — the underground
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. root — the cause
  24. shower — to wash

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