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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. root — the cause
  4. stock — goods
  5. face — part of the head
  6. rest — what's left
  7. toast — bread
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. root — of a word
  10. field — for sport
  11. content — happy
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. rest — what's left
  14. face — to confront
  15. spell — letters
  16. face — to point toward
  17. field — a subject
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. stock — shares
  20. content — the amount
  21. spell — a short time
  22. root — of a plant
  23. rest — a break
  24. spell — magic

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