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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. root — of a word
  3. game — wild animals
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. game — a match
  7. present — a gift
  8. spring — a coil
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. spring — the season
  11. board — to get on
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. board — a committee
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. root — of a plant
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. wake — a trail
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. spring — of water
  22. root — the cause
  23. present — there
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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