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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. root — the cause
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. hand — in cards
  8. cap — of ice
  9. root — of a plant
  10. drill — army training
  11. band — a ring
  12. root — of a word
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. band — a music group
  15. cell — in biology
  16. drill — the tool
  17. drill — a practice
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. cap — a hat
  20. perch — the fish
  21. hand — help
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. cap — a lid

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