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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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. last — final
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. root — of a plant
  5. object — a thing
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. lean — thin
  8. object — an aim
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. last — to go on
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. root — the cause
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. cold — an illness
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. last — finally
  20. object — to protest
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. cold — not warm
  23. lean — to bend
  24. pitcher — a jug

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