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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. root — of a word
  3. object — to protest
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. fine — all right
  6. last — to go on
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. perch — the fish
  9. stem — to come from
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. root — of a plant
  12. object — a thing
  13. fine — high quality
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. root — the cause
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. last — final
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. last — finally

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