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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: land · root · fork · deal · race · cap · pit · degree

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. pit — a hole
  3. land — ground
  4. root — the cause
  5. cap — of ice
  6. cap — a lid
  7. race — a contest
  8. pit — in a race
  9. root — of a plant
  10. race — the arms race
  11. deal — to handle
  12. race — humankind
  13. land — to come down
  14. cap — a hat
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. root — of a word
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. degree — temperature
  22. degree — an amount
  23. land — a country
  24. fork — in a road

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