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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 a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. season — of the year
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. season — in sport
  6. root — of a word
  7. spell — magic
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. wind — moving air
  12. row — a line
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. content — the amount
  15. saw — the tool
  16. wind — moving air
  17. spell — letters
  18. root — the cause
  19. spell — a short time
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. content — happy
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. row — to paddle
  24. saw — the tool

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