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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. craft — boats
  3. root — the cause
  4. craft — a skill
  5. cold — not warm
  6. root — of a plant
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. ground — crushed
  10. root — of a word
  11. ground — the earth
  12. prune — to trim
  13. hand — in cards
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. last — final
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. hand — help
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. fork — in a road
  21. last — to go on
  22. prune — to trim
  23. cold — an illness
  24. last — finally

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