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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. scale — size or range
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. pop — soda
  7. root — of a word
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. stem — to come from
  10. kid — child
  11. kid — to tease
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. pop — to visit
  18. pop — music
  19. fork — in a road
  20. plane — a tool
  21. dip — to sink
  22. root — the cause
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. root — of a plant

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