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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. root — the cause
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. kid — child
  5. bank — of a river
  6. cold — an illness
  7. root — of a plant
  8. bank — for money
  9. court — of law
  10. root — of a word
  11. craft — a skill
  12. court — of a king
  13. craft — boats
  14. dip — to sink
  15. cold — not warm
  16. kid — to tease
  17. pop — music
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. pop — soda
  20. pop — to visit
  21. bank — for money
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. dip — to dunk

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