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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 will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. root — of a plant
  3. band — a music group
  4. root — the cause
  5. root — of a word
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. march — the month
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. content — the amount
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rest — a break
  14. rest — what's left
  15. band — a ring
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. wind — moving air
  19. content — happy
  20. capital — a city
  21. capital — money
  22. wind — moving air
  23. march — music
  24. capital — a big letter

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