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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. root — the cause
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. field — for sport
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. clip — to cut
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. bat — the animal
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. field — farmland
  11. game — wild animals
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. root — of a plant
  15. chair — a leader
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. field — a subject
  18. lie — to recline
  19. clip — a video
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. clip — for paper
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. root — of a word

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