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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. root — of a plant
  3. court — of law
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. bass — low music
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. spring — a coil
  9. file — a tool
  10. court — of a king
  11. spring — the season
  12. spring — of water
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. fall — the season
  15. bore — to drill
  16. fall — to drop
  17. root — of a word
  18. bore — to tire
  19. court — for sport
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. root — the cause
  22. file — a document
  23. bass — the fish
  24. file — a line of people

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