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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 116 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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. track — to keep track
  3. root — the cause
  4. root — of a word
  5. root — of a plant
  6. rest — a break
  7. track — a song
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. last — finally
  11. last — to go on
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. perch — the fish
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. track — a path
  16. last — final
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. rest — what's left
  20. wax — to grow
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. rest — what's left
  24. cabinet — ministers

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