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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. root — of a plant
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. ground — a position
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. wound — an injury
  8. ground — the earth
  9. ground — crushed
  10. chest — a box
  11. rule — a law
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. dip — to sink
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. chest — of your body
  19. root — the cause
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. root — of a word
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. rule — government
  24. rule — to rule out

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