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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 light ________________ burned out.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. root — of a word
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. branch — a division
  5. rest — what's left
  6. root — of a plant
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. mine — for digging
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. season — in sport
  14. kid — child
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. season — of the year
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. rest — what's left
  19. bulb — for light
  20. root — the cause
  21. rest — a break
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. kid — to tease
  24. coach — a trainer

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