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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 water is too ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. bound — certain
  3. root — of a plant
  4. cold — an illness
  5. bound — obliged
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. bank — of a river
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. bank — for money
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. bank — for money
  16. staff — employees
  17. staff — employees
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. bound — tied together
  20. staff — a stick
  21. root — the cause
  22. root — of a word
  23. bat — the animal
  24. arm — part of the body

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