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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. present — there
  3. file — a line of people
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. present — a gift
  6. root — the cause
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. season — in sport
  12. root — of a word
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. season — of the year
  15. file — a document
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. pass — a permit
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. file — a tool
  22. foot — a measure
  23. present — the time now
  24. root — of a plant

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