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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. root — of a plant
  3. last — to go on
  4. land — ground
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. land — to come down
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. root — of a word
  9. land — a country
  10. roll — a cake
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. last — final
  13. last — finally
  14. fork — in a road
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. cold — an illness
  18. object — to protest
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. foot — a measure
  21. object — an aim
  22. root — the cause
  23. cold — not warm
  24. roll — a list

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