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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 116 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's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. saw — the tool
  3. root — of a plant
  4. wound — an injury
  5. mark — a grade
  6. saw — the tool
  7. field — a subject
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. key — in music
  10. field — farmland
  11. mine — for digging
  12. root — the cause
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. key — the most important part
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. content — happy
  17. field — for sport
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. key — for a lock
  20. content — the amount
  21. mark — a trace
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. wound — an injury
  24. content — videos and posts

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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