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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. chest — of your body
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. ground — a position
  7. bear — the animal
  8. ground — the earth
  9. bear — the animal
  10. root — of a plant
  11. ground — crushed
  12. bulb — for light
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. cold — an illness
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. bulb — for light
  17. rush — hurry
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. chest — of your body
  20. pass — a permit
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. root — of a word
  23. cold — not warm
  24. chest — a box

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