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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. tear — from crying
  3. march — the month
  4. saw — the tool
  5. tear — from crying
  6. root — the cause
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. lie — to recline
  11. bore — to tire
  12. cell — in biology
  13. saw — the tool
  14. march — music
  15. tear — to rip
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. march — the month
  19. cell — a phone
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. bore — to drill
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. root — of a plant

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