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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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. last — finally
  3. mark — a trace
  4. spring — the season
  5. clip — to cut
  6. rash — hasty
  7. clip — a video
  8. root — of a word
  9. spring — of water
  10. mark — a grade
  11. root — the cause
  12. rush — hurry
  13. last — final
  14. clip — for paper
  15. capital — a city
  16. root — of a plant
  17. last — to go on
  18. spring — a coil
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. capital — money
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. rash — on the skin

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