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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. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. dip — to sink
  3. root — of a word
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. bore — to drill
  6. cold — an illness
  7. pit — a hole
  8. file — a document
  9. clip — a video
  10. file — a line of people
  11. clip — to cut
  12. cold — not warm
  13. clip — for paper
  14. file — a tool
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. root — the cause
  17. charge — electricity
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. charge — a price
  20. bore — to tire
  21. pit — in a race
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. charge — in control
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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