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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bear — the animal
  3. drill — the tool
  4. lie — to recline
  5. bat — the animal
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. spell — letters
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. root — the cause
  10. spell — a short time
  11. drill — army training
  12. shower — rain
  13. drill — a practice
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. shower — to wash
  16. season — of the year
  17. spell — magic
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. root — of a word
  21. root — of a plant
  22. bear — the animal
  23. season — in sport
  24. lie — an untruth

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