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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. root — of a word
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. season — of the year
  5. root — the cause
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. fine — all right
  8. season — in sport
  9. cold — not warm
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. bear — the animal
  15. cold — an illness
  16. bear — the animal
  17. mine — for digging
  18. root — of a plant
  19. rule — a law
  20. rule — government
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. fine — high quality
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. fork — in a road

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