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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. last — to go on
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. court — of a king
  8. root — of a plant
  9. root — the cause
  10. mine — for digging
  11. last — finally
  12. rock — a stone
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. snap — to click
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. court — of law
  19. court — for sport
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. root — of a word
  23. last — final
  24. mine — belonging to me

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