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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. tear — to rip
  4. wound — an injury
  5. spring — the season
  6. root — of a word
  7. root — of a plant
  8. present — the time now
  9. present — a gift
  10. field — for sport
  11. field — farmland
  12. tear — from crying
  13. wound — an injury
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. field — a subject
  17. present — there
  18. saw — the tool
  19. root — the cause
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. tear — from crying
  23. spring — a coil
  24. spring — of water

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