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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. file — a line of people
  3. root — of a word
  4. object — to protest
  5. bulb — for light
  6. kid — to tease
  7. wake — a trail
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. object — a thing
  10. root — of a plant
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. root — the cause
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. object — an aim
  16. season — in sport
  17. file — a tool
  18. bulb — for light
  19. file — a document
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. kid — child
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. snap — to click

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