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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 ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. staff — employees
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. cell — in biology
  6. staff — a stick
  7. staff — employees
  8. ground — the earth
  9. hand — help
  10. fine — high quality
  11. ground — crushed
  12. ground — a position
  13. fine — all right
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. hand — in cards
  16. root — the cause
  17. cell — a phone
  18. root — of a word

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