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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. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. key — the most important part
  3. key — for a lock
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. root — the cause
  6. face — to confront
  7. key — in music
  8. face — to point toward
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. face — part of the head
  11. kid — child
  12. root — of a word
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. chair — a leader
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. kid — to tease
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. fork — in a road
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. wake — a trail
  24. jam — a tight spot

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