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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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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: mate · jam · root · degree · chest · racket · shower · hand

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. mate — a friend
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. root — of a word
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. root — of a plant
  7. hand — help
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. chest — a box
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. shower — rain
  13. mate — a partner
  14. root — the cause
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. degree — an amount
  17. degree — from a university
  18. mate — to breed
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. degree — temperature
  21. chest — of your body
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. shower — to wash
  24. chest — of your body

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