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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 120 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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. march — music
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. last — final
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. deal — to handle
  8. spring — a coil
  9. root — of a word
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. last — to go on
  12. spring — of water
  13. last — finally
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. root — the cause
  16. root — of a plant
  17. bear — the animal
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. bear — the animal
  20. kick — in football
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. march — the month
  23. perch — the fish
  24. march — the month

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