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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 120 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: kick · patient · mine · mate · degree · suit · squash · root

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. degree — an amount
  3. suit — to fit
  4. squash — the sport
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. suit — in cards
  7. squash — to crush
  8. degree — from a university
  9. root — the cause
  10. suit — clothes
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. mate — to breed
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. root — of a plant
  16. root — of a word
  17. degree — temperature
  18. mate — a friend
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. mine — for digging
  21. mate — a partner
  22. kick — in football
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. kick — a thrill

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