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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. cold — an illness
  4. rash — a series
  5. ball — a great time
  6. toast — bread
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. root — of a plant
  9. bark — to shout
  10. rash — hasty
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. sharp — clever
  13. ball — a dance
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. field — farmland
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. root — of a word
  19. field — a subject
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. field — for sport
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. cold — not warm

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