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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. march — the month
  3. field — farmland
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. bound — tied together
  6. wound — an injury
  7. root — of a plant
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. track — to keep track
  10. march — the month
  11. bound — certain
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. cap — a lid
  14. track — a song
  15. field — a subject
  16. field — for sport
  17. cap — of ice
  18. cap — a hat
  19. wound — an injury
  20. root — of a word
  21. bound — obliged
  22. march — music
  23. date — the fruit
  24. track — a path

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