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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. present — there
  3. squash — to crush
  4. root — of a plant
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. present — the time now
  8. root — of a word
  9. squash — the sport
  10. saw — the tool
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. saw — the tool
  15. root — the cause
  16. spring — of water
  17. mine — for digging
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. file — a document
  20. spring — the season
  21. file — a line of people
  22. file — a tool
  23. present — a gift
  24. spring — a coil

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