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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. last — to go on
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. shower — rain
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. plane — a tool
  8. last — final
  9. last — finally
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. shower — to wash
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — not warm
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. mark — a trace
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. root — of a word
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. mine — for digging
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. mark — a grade
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. root — of a plant

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