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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: cell · root · racket · degree · content · patient · swing · kick

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. degree — from a university
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. degree — temperature
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. content — the amount
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. root — of a plant
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. swing — in golf
  14. root — of a word
  15. swing — to play on
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. cell — in biology
  19. content — happy
  20. kick — in football
  21. root — the cause
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. degree — an amount
  24. cell — a phone

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