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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. bound — tied together
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. root — of a plant
  5. prune — to trim
  6. land — ground
  7. root — the cause
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. bound — certain
  10. root — of a word
  11. land — to come down
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. land — a country
  14. mate — a friend
  15. fall — the season
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bank — of a river
  18. fall — to drop
  19. bound — obliged
  20. bank — for money
  21. prune — to trim
  22. bank — for money
  23. mate — to breed
  24. fall — to drop

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