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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. root — of a word
  3. charge — in control
  4. spring — the season
  5. court — for sport
  6. root — of a plant
  7. spring — of water
  8. drill — a practice
  9. root — the cause
  10. staff — employees
  11. court — of law
  12. drill — army training
  13. clip — for paper
  14. charge — electricity
  15. bear — the animal
  16. staff — a stick
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. spring — a coil
  19. court — of a king
  20. charge — a price
  21. bear — the animal
  22. staff — employees
  23. clip — to cut
  24. clip — a video

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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