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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 120 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 a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. track — a song
  3. fine — all right
  4. clip — a video
  5. fine — high quality
  6. clip — for paper
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. bulb — for light
  10. clip — to cut
  11. mine — for digging
  12. root — the cause
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. bulb — for light
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. track — to keep track
  18. hand — help
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. track — a path
  22. root — of a word
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. hand — in cards

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