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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. dip — to sink
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. wax — to grow
  8. present — there
  9. clip — a video
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. clip — to cut
  14. clip — for paper
  15. bear — the animal
  16. wake — a trail
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. root — the cause
  19. rock — music
  20. root — of a plant
  21. rock — a stone
  22. bear — the animal
  23. present — a gift
  24. present — the time now

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