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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. root — of a word
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. spell — letters
  5. rest — what's left
  6. court — of a king
  7. root — of a plant
  8. rest — a break
  9. rest — what's left
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. spell — a short time
  14. plane — a tool
  15. root — the cause
  16. pop — to visit
  17. spell — magic
  18. snap — to click
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. pop — music
  21. prune — to trim
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. court — for sport
  24. pop — soda

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