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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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. root — of a word
  4. last — to go on
  5. toast — bread
  6. root — of a plant
  7. cap — a lid
  8. last — final
  9. cell — in biology
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. cell — a phone
  13. rest — what's left
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. cap — of ice
  17. last — finally
  18. date — the fruit
  19. spring — a coil
  20. rest — what's left
  21. root — the cause
  22. spring — the season
  23. cap — a hat
  24. spring — of water

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