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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.

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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. root — the cause
  4. club — for golf
  5. club — a group
  6. spell — letters
  7. deal — to handle
  8. root — of a word
  9. last — to go on
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. root — of a plant
  13. field — for sport
  14. spell — a short time
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. field — a subject
  17. club — for dancing
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. dip — to sink
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. last — final
  22. spell — magic
  23. last — finally
  24. field — farmland

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