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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 116 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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. root — of a plant
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. game — wild animals
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. swing — in golf
  9. last — finally
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. last — to go on
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. root — of a word
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. game — a match
  19. root — the cause
  20. wax — to grow
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. last — final
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. swing — music

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