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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. pop — soda
  3. wound — an injury
  4. root — of a word
  5. stock — shares
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. bulb — for light
  8. pop — music
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. cue — a hint
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. spring — the season
  13. pop — to visit
  14. wound — an injury
  15. spring — a coil
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. bulb — for light
  18. root — the cause
  19. stock — goods
  20. spring — of water
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. cue — for pool
  23. root — of a plant
  24. cue — a signal

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