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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. land — to come down
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. spell — letters
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. bore — to tire
  8. spell — a short time
  9. wind — moving air
  10. bore — to drill
  11. dip — to sink
  12. land — a country
  13. root — of a word
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. root — the cause
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. land — ground
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. wind — moving air
  22. shower — rain
  23. shower — to wash
  24. root — of a plant

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