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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. field — farmland
  5. ground — crushed
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. fine — high quality
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. root — of a plant
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. fine — all right
  13. root — the cause
  14. ground — the earth
  15. branch — a division
  16. mug — a cup
  17. ground — a position
  18. field — for sport
  19. mug — to rob
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. root — of a word
  24. field — a subject

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