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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 116 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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. land — to come down
  4. root — of a plant
  5. firm — steady
  6. file — a tool
  7. file — a document
  8. last — final
  9. firm — a company
  10. prune — to trim
  11. cue — a signal
  12. prune — to trim
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. root — the cause
  15. land — ground
  16. cue — a hint
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. last — finally
  20. cue — for pool
  21. file — a line of people
  22. land — a country
  23. last — to go on
  24. root — of a word

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