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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. season — of the year
  3. file — a document
  4. net — for catching
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. root — the cause
  9. root — of a plant
  10. mine — for digging
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. file — a tool
  13. root — of a word
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. net — in sport
  17. net — after costs
  18. season — in sport
  19. chest — of your body
  20. file — a line of people
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. chest — of your body

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