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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. cap — a hat
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. root — of a plant
  5. spring — a coil
  6. spring — the season
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. wind — moving air
  9. present — a gift
  10. wind — moving air
  11. root — the cause
  12. bark — to shout
  13. cap — of ice
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. drill — army training
  16. pass — a permit
  17. present — there
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. drill — a practice
  20. present — the time now
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. drill — the tool
  23. cap — a lid
  24. spring — of water

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