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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 120 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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. cold — not warm
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. cue — for pool
  5. spell — magic
  6. spell — letters
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. cue — a hint
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. cold — an illness
  11. spell — a short time
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. lie — to recline
  16. scale — size or range
  17. cue — a signal
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. root — of a plant
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. scale — in music
  24. root — the cause

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