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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. net — in sport
  3. plane — a tool
  4. clip — to cut
  5. clip — a video
  6. chest — a box
  7. bound — obliged
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. track — to keep track
  10. chest — of your body
  11. net — for catching
  12. net — after costs
  13. chest — of your body
  14. track — a song
  15. track — a path
  16. clip — for paper
  17. row — to paddle
  18. root — of a plant
  19. root — of a word
  20. bound — certain
  21. bound — tied together
  22. row — a line
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. plane — in geometry

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