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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. field — for sport
  4. spell — magic
  5. root — the cause
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. rule — government
  8. kick — in football
  9. bat — the animal
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. root — of a plant
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. field — a subject
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. spell — letters
  16. field — farmland
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. spell — a short time
  19. drill — army training
  20. rule — a law
  21. drill — a practice
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. drill — the tool
  24. bat — in an idiom

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