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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. root — of a word
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. root — the cause
  6. spring — the season
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. spring — a coil
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. chest — a box
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. root — of a plant
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. chest — of your body
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. fork — in a road
  20. perch — the fish
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. bark — to shout
  23. chest — of your body
  24. perch — for a bird

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