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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: degree · root · land · bear · ball · perch · rash · cabinet

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. ball — a great time
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. land — to come down
  5. rash — a series
  6. ball — a dance
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. degree — an amount
  9. root — of a plant
  10. land — ground
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. degree — temperature
  13. bear — the animal
  14. land — a country
  15. bear — the animal
  16. root — of a word
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. perch — the fish
  22. root — the cause
  23. degree — from a university
  24. perch — for a bird

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