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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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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: suit · clip · race · root · temple · press · degree · tear

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. race — a contest
  3. suit — in cards
  4. degree — an amount
  5. root — the cause
  6. press — a publisher
  7. suit — to fit
  8. clip — to cut
  9. clip — for paper
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. root — of a plant
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. press — newspapers
  14. degree — temperature
  15. press — to push
  16. suit — clothes
  17. race — the arms race
  18. tear — to rip
  19. degree — from a university
  20. root — of a word
  21. tear — from crying
  22. clip — a video
  23. tear — from crying
  24. temple — a place of worship

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