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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: date · pound · race · bowl · coach · spell · degree · root

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. race — humankind
  6. degree — an amount
  7. date — the fruit
  8. race — a contest
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. root — of a word
  12. spell — magic
  13. root — the cause
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. spell — a short time
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. race — the arms race
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. degree — from a university
  20. spell — letters
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. pound — a weight
  24. root — of a plant

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