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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. fine — all right
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. root — the cause
  5. root — of a word
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. bat — the animal
  8. march — the month
  9. rest — a break
  10. root — of a plant
  11. march — the month
  12. bore — to tire
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. fine — high quality
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rest — what's left
  19. bore — to drill
  20. march — music
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. bat — in an idiom

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