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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. root — the cause
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. root — of a word
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. march — the month
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. march — the month
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. cold — not warm
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. root — of a plant
  15. wake — a trail
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. pass — a permit
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. cold — an illness
  21. bat — the animal
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. march — music
  24. hide — to keep secret

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