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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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. band — a ring
  3. root — of a plant
  4. prune — to trim
  5. fall — to drop
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. march — music
  8. file — a tool
  9. march — the month
  10. fall — to drop
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. march — the month
  13. band — a music group
  14. fall — the season
  15. firm — a company
  16. cue — a signal
  17. firm — steady
  18. firm — decided
  19. file — a line of people
  20. file — a document
  21. prune — to trim
  22. root — the cause
  23. cue — a hint
  24. cue — for pool

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