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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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. root — of a word
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. cell — a phone
  5. perch — the fish
  6. rule — a law
  7. spell — letters
  8. spell — magic
  9. spring — a coil
  10. root — of a plant
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. ball — a dance
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. cell — in biology
  16. spring — the season
  17. root — the cause
  18. spell — a short time
  19. rule — government
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. ball — a great time
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. bowl — a dish

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