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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. bat — the animal
  5. mine — for digging
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. root — of a plant
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. branch — a division
  14. pass — a permit
  15. root — the cause
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. root — of a word
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. leaves — of a tree

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