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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 120 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. cap — a hat
  4. cap — a lid
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. root — of a word
  7. spell — a short time
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. root — of a plant
  10. mine — for digging
  11. spell — letters
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. sharp — clever
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. root — the cause
  18. spell — magic

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