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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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  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. cap — of ice
  2. present — there
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. chip — for betting
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. root — of a word
  10. sharp — clever
  11. chip — to eat
  12. present — a gift
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. mine — for digging
  15. root — of a plant
  16. spring — the season
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. present — the time now
  19. spring — of water
  20. spring — a coil
  21. cap — a hat
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. cap — a lid
  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