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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 ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. field — a subject
  3. field — for sport
  4. root — of a word
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. shower — to wash
  9. race — a contest
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. clip — for paper
  12. last — to go on
  13. clip — to cut
  14. last — finally
  15. shower — rain
  16. race — humankind
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. race — the arms race
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. last — final
  21. root — the cause
  22. bulb — for light
  23. clip — a video
  24. field — farmland

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