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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 120 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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. spring — the season
  3. suit — in cards
  4. spring — of water
  5. suit — clothes
  6. court — of a king
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. stem — to come from
  9. suit — to fit
  10. root — of a plant
  11. root — of a word
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. file — a document
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. court — of law
  17. file — a tool
  18. file — a line of people
  19. court — for sport
  20. pitch — completely
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. root — the cause

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