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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 goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. spring — a coil
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. capital — a city
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. suit — clothes
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. capital — money
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. spring — of water
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. prune — to trim
  14. root — of a word
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. suit — to fit
  18. prune — to trim
  19. suit — in cards
  20. root — of a plant
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. spring — the season
  24. root — the cause

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