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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 116 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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. file — a tool
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. file — a line of people
  6. wake — a trail
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. root — of a word
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. root — of a plant
  12. hand — help
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. file — a document
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. hand — in cards
  18. bowl — to roll

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