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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 116 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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468
Word bank
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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. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. cold — an illness
  4. root — of a word
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. bound — obliged
  7. root — the cause
  8. season — in sport
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. bound — tied together
  12. season — of the year
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. cold — not warm
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. bound — certain
  21. root — of a plant
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. bowl — to roll

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