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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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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: spring · stick · cabinet · root · scale · degree · kid · net

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. net — in sport
  3. root — of a plant
  4. net — for catching
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. root — the cause
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. kid — to tease
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. degree — an amount
  11. degree — from a university
  12. kid — child
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. spring — of water
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. net — after costs
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. spring — a coil
  20. root — of a word
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. spring — the season
  23. scale — size or range
  24. scale — in music

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