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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. scale — in music
  3. land — ground
  4. root — of a plant
  5. scale — size or range
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. root — of a word
  9. capital — money
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. bulb — for light
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. land — to come down
  14. bulb — for light
  15. row — a line
  16. capital — a city
  17. land — a country
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. row — to paddle
  23. root — the cause
  24. perch — the fish

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