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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. shower — rain
  4. cap — of ice
  5. capital — a city
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. root — of a word
  8. root — of a plant
  9. shower — to wash
  10. prune — to trim
  11. court — for sport
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. court — of law
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. prune — to trim
  16. cap — a lid
  17. cap — a hat
  18. rest — what's left
  19. root — the cause
  20. court — of a king
  21. rest — what's left
  22. rest — a break
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. capital — money

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