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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. root — of a plant
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. bear — the animal
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. root — the cause
  10. pop — soda
  11. last — to go on
  12. pop — to visit
  13. bear — the animal
  14. scale — in music
  15. root — of a word
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. band — a ring
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. band — a music group
  21. last — finally
  22. scale — size or range
  23. pop — music
  24. last — final

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