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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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. cold — not warm
  3. fall — to drop
  4. root — of a plant
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. cap — a hat
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. snap — to click
  9. root — the cause
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. root — of a word
  15. spell — a short time
  16. spell — letters
  17. cap — a lid
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. deal — to handle
  20. fall — the season
  21. fall — to drop
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. spell — magic
  24. cold — an illness

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