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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 120 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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. root — of a plant
  6. wax — to grow
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. key — the most important part
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. cap — a hat
  12. current — electric
  13. root — the cause
  14. cap — of ice
  15. pit — a hole
  16. current — of water
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. current — happening now
  19. key — for a lock
  20. mine — for digging
  21. pit — in a race
  22. root — of a word
  23. key — in music
  24. cap — a lid

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