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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. root — the cause
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. root — of a word
  5. last — finally
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. root — of a plant
  8. mine — for digging
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. hand — help
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. land — ground
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. land — a country
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. last — to go on
  21. land — to come down
  22. hand — in cards
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. last — final

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