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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: root · file · temple · spring · press · degree · ruler · wake

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. wake — a trail
  5. spring — the season
  6. press — a publisher
  7. degree — from a university
  8. spring — of water
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. degree — temperature
  11. press — newspapers
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. spring — a coil
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. root — of a word
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. file — a tool
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. root — the cause
  21. degree — an amount
  22. file — a line of people
  23. root — of a plant
  24. file — a document

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