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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. rest — a break
  3. root — of a word
  4. spring — the season
  5. root — the cause
  6. spring — of water
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. cold — not warm
  9. rest — what's left
  10. lean — thin
  11. rest — what's left
  12. root — of a plant
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. chip — for betting
  16. chip — to eat
  17. net — after costs
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. spring — a coil
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. net — for catching
  23. net — in sport
  24. chip — in a computer

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