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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. root — of a word
  6. spring — the season
  7. shower — to wash
  8. fork — in a road
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. rock — a stone
  11. root — of a plant
  12. toast — bread
  13. spring — of water
  14. race — a contest
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. spring — a coil
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. root — the cause
  19. race — humankind
  20. race — the arms race
  21. shower — rain
  22. rock — music
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. fork — a garden tool

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