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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: current · season · snap · pound · root · degree · rash · leaves

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. current — happening now
  3. degree — an amount
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. season — in sport
  6. root — of a plant
  7. snap — to click
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. pound — a weight
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. degree — temperature
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. degree — from a university
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. season — of the year
  17. current — electric
  18. current — of water
  19. rash — hasty
  20. root — the cause
  21. rash — a series
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. pound — to hit hard

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