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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. wake — a trail
  4. capital — a city
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. root — of a plant
  10. root — of a word
  11. court — for sport
  12. kick — in football
  13. court — of a king
  14. deal — to handle
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. court — of law
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. file — a line of people
  22. file — a document
  23. file — a tool
  24. capital — money

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