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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 116 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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. ball — a great time
  3. bear — the animal
  4. ground — crushed
  5. kid — child
  6. root — the cause
  7. march — music
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. ground — a position
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. march — the month
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. root — of a word
  14. bear — the animal
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. rock — a stone
  17. root — of a plant
  18. march — the month
  19. ball — a dance
  20. rock — music
  21. kid — to tease
  22. ground — the earth
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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