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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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. root — of a plant
  3. land — to come down
  4. cell — in biology
  5. root — of a word
  6. mark — a trace
  7. cell — a phone
  8. rest — a break
  9. land — a country
  10. kid — child
  11. land — ground
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. rest — what's left
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. kid — to tease
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. mark — a grade
  21. root — the cause
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. mine — for digging
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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