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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. pop — to visit
  4. root — of a plant
  5. march — music
  6. pop — music
  7. press — to push
  8. lean — thin
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. pop — soda
  11. fork — in a road
  12. stem — to come from
  13. march — the month
  14. root — of a word
  15. root — the cause
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. lean — to bend
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. march — the month
  20. foot — a measure
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. press — newspapers
  24. press — a publisher

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