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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. root — of a plant
  3. tear — from crying
  4. kid — to tease
  5. land — to come down
  6. kid — child
  7. pop — soda
  8. tear — from crying
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. pop — music
  11. rest — what's left
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. fork — in a road
  14. root — the cause
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. rest — a break
  17. land — ground
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. rest — what's left
  21. pop — to visit
  22. land — a country
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. tear — to rip

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