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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. bound — certain
  3. ground — crushed
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. root — the cause
  6. ground — the earth
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bound — tied together
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. bound — obliged
  13. root — of a plant
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. wake — a trail
  18. rock — music
  19. root — of a word
  20. perch — the fish
  21. rock — a stone
  22. bat — the animal
  23. ground — a position
  24. stem — to come from

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