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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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. season — in sport
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. track — a song
  5. stand — to bear
  6. track — to keep track
  7. root — the cause
  8. board — to get on
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. chest — a box
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. chest — of your body
  15. board — a committee
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. season — of the year
  18. chest — of your body
  19. root — of a plant
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. track — a path

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