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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. cap — a hat
  3. prune — to trim
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. lean — to bend
  7. root — the cause
  8. root — of a word
  9. cap — of ice
  10. wound — an injury
  11. cap — a lid
  12. march — the month
  13. march — the month
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. fork — in a road
  16. march — music
  17. prune — to trim
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. wound — an injury
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. root — of a plant
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. racket — for tennis

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