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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. root — of a word
  3. bear — the animal
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. race — humankind
  6. cap — a hat
  7. march — music
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. march — the month
  10. bear — the animal
  11. root — the cause
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. cap — of ice
  14. cap — a lid
  15. content — the amount
  16. scale — in music
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. content — happy
  19. race — a contest
  20. march — the month
  21. bat — the animal
  22. root — of a plant
  23. race — the arms race
  24. scale — size or range

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