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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 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  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. root — of a plant
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. ground — the earth
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. ground — crushed
  7. stand — to bear
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. root — the cause
  10. ground — a position
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. season — in sport
  13. season — of the year
  14. pound — a weight
  15. present — a gift
  16. present — the time now
  17. present — there
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. content — happy
  23. content — the amount
  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