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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.

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: cell · arm · season · fan · root · degree · scale · content

  1. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. cell — in biology
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. degree — from a university
  6. season — of the year
  7. degree — an amount
  8. season — in sport
  9. content — the amount
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. root — of a plant
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. scale — size or range
  15. scale — in music
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. content — happy
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. cell — a phone
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. root — of a word
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. degree — temperature

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