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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 124 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. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. ball — a dance
  3. foot — a measure
  4. scale — size or range
  5. root — of a plant
  6. last — final
  7. root — of a word
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. last — to go on
  13. ball — a great time
  14. stock — shares
  15. stock — goods
  16. toast — bread
  17. root — the cause
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. scale — in music
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. last — finally

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