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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. root — of a word
  3. root — of a plant
  4. bear — the animal
  5. prune — to trim
  6. cell — a phone
  7. prune — to trim
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. capital — money
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. cap — a lid
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. capital — a city
  14. bear — the animal
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. root — the cause
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. cap — of ice
  24. cell — in biology

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