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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 116 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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. spring — a coil
  3. band — a music group
  4. root — of a plant
  5. rest — a break
  6. mate — a friend
  7. rush — hurry
  8. pit — in a race
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. chair — a leader
  11. rest — what's left
  12. mate — a partner
  13. spring — of water
  14. mate — to breed
  15. root — of a word
  16. rest — what's left
  17. root — the cause
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. spring — the season
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. pit — a hole
  24. band — a ring

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