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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. court — of law
  4. root — of a word
  5. squash — the sport
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. bound — certain
  9. root — the cause
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. bass — the fish
  13. court — for sport
  14. court — of a king
  15. bound — obliged
  16. row — a line
  17. root — of a plant
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. row — to paddle
  21. squash — to crush
  22. bound — tied together
  23. stem — to come from
  24. stem — a stem cell

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