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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. root — the cause
  5. bound — obliged
  6. bound — certain
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. root — of a word
  11. bound — tied together
  12. rock — music
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. stand — to bear
  15. last — finally
  16. stem — to come from
  17. root — of a plant
  18. last — to go on
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. rock — a stone
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. wax — to grow
  23. last — final
  24. stem — a stem cell

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