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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. fall — to drop
  3. kid — child
  4. fine — all right
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. fall — to drop
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. fall — the season
  9. ball — a great time
  10. pop — music
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. ball — a dance
  13. pop — soda
  14. fine — high quality
  15. root — the cause
  16. mate — a partner
  17. mate — to breed
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. mate — a friend
  20. root — of a word
  21. branch — a division
  22. kid — to tease
  23. root — of a plant
  24. ball — a round shape

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