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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. chest — of your body
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. spell — letters
  5. bank — for money
  6. march — the month
  7. pop — music
  8. chest — a box
  9. pop — soda
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. spell — a short time
  12. root — of a plant
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. pop — to visit
  15. march — the month
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. bank — of a river
  18. march — music
  19. bank — for money
  20. root — the cause
  21. spell — magic
  22. chest — of your body
  23. saw — the tool
  24. root — of a word

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