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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · roll · prune · file · land · rule · squash · degree

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. prune — to trim
  3. root — of a plant
  4. degree — an amount
  5. prune — to trim
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. land — ground
  9. root — of a word
  10. file — a document
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. squash — the sport
  14. land — a country
  15. roll — a cake
  16. file — a line of people
  17. rule — a law
  18. roll — a list
  19. degree — from a university
  20. squash — to crush
  21. root — the cause
  22. degree — temperature
  23. land — to come down
  24. rule — government

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